Dreams Alter Reality
by penpaninuSessh
Summary: Years have passed. A direct sequel to My Dreams aren't as Empty.
1. After the Years Passed By

Lo and behold, the sequel to "My Dreams aren't as Empty." This story will be seven years in the future. Most of the kids will be fifteen and in middle school. As most anime's go, a lot of adult things happen when they're that age in that school year (laugh). Saito and Yui will be married, and Taka well.,…..just read ahead. Miaka will remain Miaka however. Couldn't alter her if I wanted to! But as for our world? Well, the title says it all.

If you haven't read the story preluding this, you might want to before you go through this. It is called "My Dreams aren't as Empty." To avoid confusion, a recap of reincarnated names and who they belong to in my story:

Nakago is Naisen, now a boy of 15.

Soi is Sadako, now a girl of 14.

Ashitare is Ash, now a half wolf mongrel.

Miboshi is Mitsuko, now a shrine's assistant of age 15 .

Tomo is Toya, now a boy of 15.

Suboshi is Saito, now Yui's husband.

Amiboshi is Asakura, now Yui's brother in law.

Hiroshi is not a reincarnation from the book world, but is a son of Taka and Miaka.

Mariko is not a reincarnation from the book world, but is a daughter of Saito and Yui.

Is to indicate a flashback, but it will be painstakingly clear when you get to it.

Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi or Eikoden or any of it's incarnates that belong solely to its talented creator. Is not making a dime on this. Does claim to see the Mysterious Play in life however.

This story is dedicated to Miss KittyLynne especially, to Fushigiyugifan, black panther, Nuni-chan and others.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter one

After the years passed by

Years passed. One year to two, two to four, then before one could blink, seven short years passed almost in an instant. Naisen, Sadako and the other boys remained friends, and entered middle school together. The young men were growing tall with slim shoulders and narrow hips. Sadako willowed out slowly but surely, her hair growing in undulating cascades down her back.

Hiroshi revealed feelings towards Sadako in their years together and it was Naisen he confessed his want to date the slender red-haired girl.

A fierce pride made Naisen pull his friend aside and speak with low and urgent words to keep Sadako to himself. Hiroshi understood and backed off. Their friendship was not damaged in the slightest.

Sadako always loved Naisen so it was he she accepted. They shared their first kisses, sweet innocent pressing of lips that evolved later with shy advances to tongue caresses. They were so young, Naisen's foster parents feared they'd move along far too quickly and when indeed they tried to hold each other on his bed, Naisen's new mother stepped in and explained some rules for the household.

It didn't mean they couldn't meet after school for some more learning how to touch each other.

Hiroshi grew tall and robust, but his mother grew sad and small with grief. Taka had passed a mere year before from some bizarre inflammation of a common virus and Miaka still grieved for him. Two who had gone beyond the passage of one life to live and love together could not be easily forgotten. While Miaka was resolved not to forget her love and husband, she tried not to let it affect her life now. While her heart seared drastically for her lost companion, she kept her feet firmly anchored to the concrete of Tokyo so she may remain for her son.

Hiroshi really was his father's son. They were so alike in the shade of their skin to the darkness of their eyes, and the blue color to their hair. Hiroshi was even kind and chivalrous like Taka was, Miaka reflected with a hand over her mouth. Her son was courteous to others, and girls crushed on him at school and wanted his strength to shield them. It really wasn't fair that he would put off his own romantic pursuits to protect her, but Miaka was grateful all the same.

Hiroshi genuinely worried for his mother. He helped her in every way he could, but he could only be awed she held an indomitable will of banded iron that carried her through the good times and the bad. And these were certainly the bad. Hiroshi always knew his mother to have a smile on her face, so her naked grief was a frightening thing to behold.

He could only understand her lamentation. He missed his father terribly and the fact he couldn't see him at dinner table, or at his old school or hugging his mother was a terrible knot in his throat and in his stomach.

Naisen still kept in contact with his old school's guidance counselor. Hongo Yui, now Boshin Yui, talked with him happily as friends instead of in clinical terms and Naisen was glad to keep such a friend. He was glad about her marriage to Boshin Saito, and they all had been invited. The two were simply so happy together. Much like how his heart would ease slowly when in Sadako's presence. Naisen had had several more dreams regarding Yui-san and he confessed his treasonous deeds to her in a fit of childish fear. Yui only hugged him and said everyone did things they wish they hadn't. She was no stranger to this guilt, but she said something Sukunami-san had said before.

You could learn to love and continue your life to the best you can. Just live. Naisen, who often was called to baby sit the result of Yui-san's happiness with her husband, could only laugh and agree. Yui's daughter, Mariko, had Saito's hair and her eyes and loved when he came to watch her.

As Naisen's foster parents couldn't have children, he was glad to visit his old counselor's family. It was kind of fun watching Mariko. She was like a younger sister a lot of the time. And often Yui would let Naisen bring Sadako over to help. Naisen enjoyed the time spent with girlfriend and foster sister alike, but his almost healed heart hurt. How could he be allowed happiness? Even a little bit after all that had happened?

Yui-san forgave him, Sadako earned his affection, and Saito-san looked on him as a younger brother now. How could he have come out on top? Naisen mused ponderously as he leaned back on the couch, waiting for Sadako to finish putting Mariko to bed. Saito-san and Yui-san were due back within the hour, but it didn't mean he and Sadako couldn't pursue their own embraces.

Just as Naisen was starting to give himself a headache, his eyes slitting shut with the beginning of a migraine, a door closed and Sadako came to him. The middle school girl smoothed her short skirt and smiled helplessly at the beauty of her boyfriend before her. Leaning back, one leg crooked invitingly and his long hair tousled from sliding his fingers through it…. it was more than enough that he would want her in return. The girls in his class all thought him quite the looker. And he chose to be with her, a full year below. Sadako felt a twinge of possessive pride and cleared her throat. Naisen slit one eye open.

"Mariko-chan's finally down," Sadako giggled. She hopped on the couch beside Naisen and kissed his cheek chastely. Naisen's eyes opened fully and he smiled, his heart in his gaze. Sadako nervously watched him, her throat dry with anticipation. It had been this way for the past two years, growing more charged with each touch between them.

"She went down with only two stories? I ought be surprised," Naisen chuckled. His large hands unfastened his school jacket collar, opening his smooth throat to Sadako's thoughtful gaze. The few times she had kissed him there, he had shuddered with such longing that it almost could paralyze her. When Naisen turned to take in Sadako once more, he saw her with a very red face. Her expression was thoughtful however.

"What is it?" Naisen asked. He truly looked so perplexed that Sadako giggled.

"You, that's what!" Sadako patted her boyfriend's face. Naisen captured her hand and entwined their fingers together.

"What about me?"

"Only the hotness that IS you," Sadako said smugly. Naisen leaned forward and kissed her. The kiss threatened to erupt full force as the two young teens strained against each other. Finally Sadako pressed her small form against Naisen's side, her breasts pressing hard against him. Naisen gulped audibly and kept her still with his hands. Sadako jerked against him and fell back on the couch, Naisen tumbling with her.

"What are you doing?" Naisen gasped as their lips pressed shortly. Sadako ran her hands through his longish hair and wriggled her legs restlessly. She didn't know what to do now that they were horizontal and Naisen's red face expressed this reciprocated frustration.

"I just…want to lay here with you," Sadako said simply. Naisen let her small hands pull his face down for more sweet kisses when they heard the front door open.

Male laughter jarred the teens from their hazy world and Naisen scrambled off of Sadako to fall onto the carpet, banging his knees. He fell the rest of the way on his behind in his panic to avoid adult scrutiny.

"Ow!" he exclaimed loudly. Saito grinned at the two love struck children and helped Yui off with her coat.

"Now that's what I call some affection," Saito teased. Yui pushed at his broad chest, stepping out of her shoes.

"I've got your affection right here," she warned. Saito shrugged and made his way in, giving the two students time to gather their senses. Naisen rose to his feet, rubbing his rear. Sadako arranged her hair quickly, her face as red as her long tresses.

"We were just…." Sadako began lamely, not even able to finish a coherent sentence. Her lips were reddened and kiss-bruised. Yui made a mental note to have another 'talk' with her reincarnated seishi about going too far on her living room sofa while babysitting Mariko.

"I was helping her…." Naisen added somewhat pathetically, buttoning the collar to this uniform jacket. Saito barked with laughter, his hands on his slim hips.

"Oh let up on them, Yui! They're a couple too, they're allowed to hold each other when they want," Saito offered. Naisen grinned widely his thanks. The two men nodded as they gazed at each other. Sadako smoothed her hair back softly and felt the seishi camaraderie spark between all three of them.

"Just not when our daughter can see," Yui offered politely and Naisen flushed scarlet. Her reincarnated general had become such a young thoughtful man growing into his physical strength that it made her heart glad to see he could be a man without the weight of a country on his slim shoulders.

"My apologies, Yui-san. Sadako and I will watch ourselves here," Naisen offered smoothly. Yui kissed his cheek and ruffled his hair.

"There, now off with you both!" Yui handed her seishi the sum of his services to share with Sadako, and turned to hug the young woman in farewell.

Sadako clasped her arms around the older blond woman easily, smiling happily. The roles were reversed, she was the young one needing the older woman to trust in. She knew she could trust Yui-san as Yui-san had so wanted to trust her in the last life.

Besides, when her parents had divorced a few short years ago, Yui-san had proved an invaluable ally in talking to her about her fears for familial commitment.

"How will I know who I marry will be the right one?" Sadako had confessed, nervous as a maid on her wedding night. Yui had clasped her shoulder softly.

"You will know, because you know how your life must go. And I think you've chosen the one you're meant to be with." This had been said with a wink that made Sadako blush even now.

"Goodbye, Yui-san! Say Good morning to Mariko-chan for us," Sadako waved, taking Naisen's hand. Saito leaned down to kiss her cheek in passing as she went. The door closed behind the teens.

Saito followed his wife back to check on their daughter. "That is always a welcome sight for me," he confessed quietly. Yui took his large hand and led him away lest he wake their child.

"Our daughter sleeping in her bed?" Yui asked. Her palm smoothed over Saito's cheek lovingly.

"Oh, yes…. and you in ours…. The both of you with me," Saito smiled. Yui traced the tell tale lines crinkling along the sides of his eyes. He was not quite thirty and still as trim and hale as ever, his face a mirror to his brother who lived away across town from them.

Yui turned into his arms and leaned up to kiss him. Saito smiled and squeezed her close.

Naisen and Sadako walked home, opting to ride the rails instead of the bus. Their hands reached out and squeezed together as they walked down the concrete steps. The swift breezes the subway cars blew flapped their coats around, and rustled their long unbound hair. Naisen sat on a bench to wait for their train, and Sadako leaned close against his shoulder. Naisen looked softly over the top of her head and closed his eyes a moment. A large man walked near them and Naisen slit his eyes open and gave him a questioning gaze that brooked for no argument. The man, who looked as far dark as Naisen's gaze did, seemed to rethink his position and went on his way.

The train rumbled up, bringing a fresh blast of cold air in the tunnel. Sadako shivered and Naisen took her arm, walking on when the doors slid open with an audible 'ping.' Sadako stretched and grinned before she and her boyfriend sat side by side against the cold of the train car.

"How did your talk with Yui-san go?" Naisen asked, stifling a yawn. He seemed to get little sleep the nights he and Sadako went to school, and babysat Mariko afterwards. His foster parents didn't mind the friendship with his old counselor and her family, but he had to be back before the trains stopped running. Sadako's parents didn't seem to mind one way or another, but it sickened her that they thought she and Naisen were already sleeping together.

Not that the thought hadn't crossed her mind since she and he hit puberty, Sadako reflected as she blew on her gloved hands. Naisen and she had kept having dream-memories of the last life, of her above him while her hair shielded them from the world….

"It went well enough! She really helped me out…. Like when Dad comes back to visit," Sadako looked down. Naisen nodded.

"How does that make you feel?" he intoned with a slowly deepening voice. Sadako had to smile.

"Now you're using Yui-san's line," she teased. "And it doesn't make me feel so good since they give me the ninth degree about you. They think they're going to find you with me in the middle of the night…"

Naisen smiled slightly, his face red. "Some day, maybe. Well, they won't catch me with you."

Sadako blushed. They got off on their stop and Naisen walked Sadako home first before turning to his neighborhood.

"Hiroshi left a message on my cell," Sadako commented, looking at the thin instrument. "I'll call him back before I go to bed."

"Tell him hi, I'm just going to sleep," Naisen offered, stretching one lean arm over his head. Sadako stepped on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

"All right, I will. I hope he's okay…" Sadako mused as they parted ways. She said hello to her mother, and clicked open her cell. Punching in the speed dial to Hiroshi's number, she knelt to pet Ash, now a full-grown wolfling pup. He was as high as her waist now, and she could rest her arm on his back if she chose.

"Hiroshi-kun? Yeah, its Sadako…." Sadako said, sitting on her bed. Ash leaped up to lay his head in her lap, pulling his lip back over his teeth in a mock smile.

Hiroshi hung up with Sadako and peered into the kitchen. His mother was sitting at the small table, her head on her arms. From where he stood at his newly acquired height, she looked to be dozing. But for all he knew, she could be awake, and crying silently as he had seen her do numerous times.

Hiroshi's eyes saddened and he cleared his throat. "Mama?"

Sukunami Miaka sat up, rubbing her wet cheek with the back of a slender hand. "My boy…. how was your day?" she asked weakly, her lips stretched in as bright a smile as she could make. My Taka, how I miss you. Hiroshi is your every image…. If she glazed her eyes just right, the lithe vision of her tall son could almost be her lost love….

Hiroshi cleared his throat and smiled weakly. His eyes strained sadly as he stepped forward to kiss his mother's cheek dutifully. "It went fine. Naisen and I got to practice softball during physical education today."

Miaka chuckled lightly and held her son's face in her hands. "Oh, that's good. How are your friends? Naisen-kun?"

She would ever ask him that, Hiroshi reflected. Sometimes he felt his best friend and his mother knew a lot more than he did, shared some deep secret. He resolved not to let it trouble him as it once might have.

"Naisen's fine! He and Sadako-chan went to watch Mariko-chan tonight." With Yui-san being as close as a foster aunt, Hiroshi knew Mariko since her birth, and saw her first smiles, her first toddling steps as if he were a brother in blood if not in spirit. Naisen knew her as well as he did and it was as if they shared a sibling through his 'Aunt Yui.'

"Oh, that's fine…." Miaka mused quietly. "I should call Yui-chan soon…."

Hiroshi nodded fervently.

"You should, Mama! She worries about you as well…" Hiroshi gulped. The scene was so normal he could almost expect to see his father walk in any moment for a snack before bedtime. The way his mother glanced over his shoulder toward the living room confirmed she shared his want.

"I'm sure she does…" Miaka said idly, and cleared the cobwebs from her mind. "Do you have any homework?" At a shake from Hiroshi's dark head she sighed.

"Well, off to bed with you, son. I'll see you tomorrow before school."

Hiroshi knelt and kissed his mother's cheek again. When did she seem so short, so small? Where had those lines near the corners of her eyes come from? Her hair was still dark, it's wonderful auburn brown, but there were a few lines of silver. Did grief age one prematurely? Did grief take the joy from one's life?

Hiroshi's heart seized and he resolved to ever make his mother smile, as he tried to since the funeral over a year ago. He didn't know if he would be the one to ease his mother's heart, but he would support her.

As Hiroshi readied for sleep, he offered an offshoot of a hazy prayer to the heavens. 'Help my mother, if someone is listening. She deserves to be happy.'

Suzaku leaned over the teenager as he slept deeply and evenly. His feathered wings of flame brushed ethereal over the boy of his reincarnated seishi and the Phoenix God smiled softly.

'Your mother shall never go for want. This is the will of Suzaku Sekun, and his priestess will be ever cared for. I have sent someone already.'

Off in Hokkaido, a seventeen-year old red-haired high school student watched the stars, or what were visible. If he squinted just right, maybe he could see the stars from his dreams….

"Tetsuo, come inside," his mother called. The young man took his elbow off his knee and swung his leg down, rising to his impressive height.

"Coming, Mom!" Tetsuo called, but stole one last glance at the night sky. His heart twisted and burned for someone he could not name. But in his dreams, he curled his strong fingers through brown hair, held a small woman close and protected her with fist and flame. Sure his dreams bordered on the fantasy, but that's all they were, were dreams. Right? Then why did it feel so real…. and why did his right forearm burn with the passion the dreams wrought?

"I must be going crazy," Tetsuo shrugged. He shut the door and went inside. He couldn't help hoping for a dream even now, even if it couldn't be real.

Miaka knelt before the small family altar before she prepared for bed as she did most every night. Taka's portrait hung framed before the incense holders, somber yet smiling as if to give her strength. Courage, she must have courage, Miaka thought, her daily mantra as she prayed earnestly to her departed love.

"Lately it is a struggle…Taka, watch over me. Suzaku, cradle him in your embrace and help me never to forget…" Miaka pressed her palms together and closed her eyes, lips forming the words noiselessly.

Every night, she remembered the last time she saw Taka, laying in a hospital bed, his face gaunt and shallow with pain as she held his hand tightly between hers. She could still hear his dear voice speaking his final words, even if the memory of his voice was fading, bit by bit…and it had only been a little over a year!

How weak his large hands had been between hers…. How pale he had seemed, how tired but loving his eyes…. Miaka closed her eyes tighter, and tears squeezed around the closed lids. She remembered as she prayed….

"I can't be with you, Miaka…." Taka had whispered. The strain of speaking was showing on his face. He was in so much pain….. Miaka kissed his hand, her eyes naked with fear.

"Don't speak, Taka. You can't strain yourself!" she whispered hurriedly.

Taka put one hand in the air and coughed. Miaka held onto his other hand so tight, she left marks. "Let me…..I know someone will come for you….and take care of you….. for me…."

Miaka's eyes flowed with a fountain of agony. "No….," she whispered, her mouth lined with the constraint of holding her pain back. "No, Taka, I can't…."

"Don't ever hold back…. any part of yourself back…." Taka smiled as his eyes darkened. As his fingers curled around her cheek lovingly, she wondered if he could see her anymore. "You aren't living if you hold yourself back…."

Miaka cried out a forced laugh, her smile the image of pain. Her tears flowed over her husband's hand. Her words from his lips…. Her advice turned back to herself. It was one of the more rare times Tamahome's reincarnation would speak of his previous life's deity. Taka so wanted to live his new life the way he wanted…. but now he would be pious and loyal. At the very end he would show his deepest strength.

"Taka…."

"Suzaku's will….. live….. live ….and…love…."

"Taka…." Miaka whispered his name again and again as he eased back, his eyes sliding closed. A small smile played across his lips and he gave up his old soul.

Miaka kissed his still lips before he went completely cold, savoring the last brush against the spark of the man she knew in another world to this one. And she wept.

Miaka brushed the tears from her eyes as she closed the altar doors, smiling with soft pain. "I love you , Taka…. May Suzaku hold you in his embrace ever after…."

As Miaka readied for bed, the red-haired teen across the islands lay awake in bed. He cushioned his unruly head of hair on his lithe arm, staring up at the dark ceiling. Somewhere, there was a woman just for him. He could feel it. It was the fire bird's will, the plumed bird that looked at him knowingly in the corner of his mind and the corner of his dreams as he loved a woman with dark hair.

"And one day, I will find her…." Tetsuo was sure of it.

End for now

The sequel to "My Dreams aren't as Empty." And this story will continue. Like it? Hate it? Please review. Review is crack to a fanfiction author.

Most sincerely yours, penpaninu 1/12/06


	2. The Dreams Remain

The sparse but hearty reviews really inspired me to at least try to update within a week :P I'm pleased those who follow my stories read this and seemed to enjoy it.

As always, the biggest thanks to Miss Kittylynne for always inspiring me, and always having a kind word May health always be hers, and her Bandit ever waiting on her hand and foot (lol)

This chapter is dedicated to Miss KittyLynne, FushigiYugifan, black panther, Nuni-chan, iluvmistsukake, and others. And to Ledefey cause I love her so much. And to Silvery Rin even if she doesn't read Fushigi Yuugi fanfiction.

Using Tetsuo for Tasuki's reincarnated name is mainly for my love of Otomo Katsuhiro's "Akira." This milestone in manga and animation really inspired me to try others of the same medium from Japan.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter two

The Dreams Remain

The woman before him was Sadako. Soi. Sadako. It was Her, all Naisen needed to know. He lifted his head, and his hair, far longer, cascaded over his shoulders. Those wide slopes of flesh were more pronounced, muscled and honed to bear the weight of armor and weapon. His chest was thin, but finely toned, his arms lean, his hands powerful.

"Nakago….." Sadako whispered, this older version of the schoolgirl he knew. She was taller, her breasts rounder, her curves more pronounced and her thighs pressed close as if to hide what he knew so intimately about her. When she stepped closer to him, her thighs parted and he glimpsed the short crop of hair hiding her feminine charms.

"Soi…why do you fear this?" Was that his voice? It was deeper, powerful and commanded power, yet asked for respect all at once. The woman he knew to be younger crawled to straddle his bare hips. Nothing stood between them but their flesh. His arousal rose against her soft belly and stiffened pleasantly against her close company. She bent to kiss him, her lips soft and open to his tongue. Her hair fell around them, tickling and heightening his lustful mood. When she leaned close to his shoulders, her breasts brushed his chest.

Naisen groaned with the memory. Was this memory? It felt so good….. His heart stirred in his broad chest, troubled with himself as it usually was. He masked his lips and eyes however. Often, he wouldn't even utter a groan of orgasm, masking his emotions so well that even in that intimate act he held himself back from Soi.

It would sadden Sadako if she couldn't have all of him this time. Naisen felt deep remorse even with her memory's lush curves pressing all over him and against him. She was the only woman he would allow in his tent, and she knew this, but there may be a reason she was the only one. He could not trust anyone to relax around, even a fellow Seiryuu seishi warrior and celestial comrade. Especially since she was defined as thus, he could not open his heart or his memories.

She could have the memories of his troubled young eyes as he saved her from the hands of a rapist. And the memories of holy battle at his side and gaining their celestial status with the Emperor and in each other's arms. But she could not have all of him in this memory…

Naisen shifted under the older Sadako and sighed as she aroused him with hands and mouth, her womanhood wet against his rigid arousal. When he opened his eyes to her, Sadako looked at him through the woman's eyes.

"I love you."

Naisen woke up slowly, his body aching with the dream's physical pleasantness. His heart throbbed in his chest however, and he gripped his torso with widely splayed fingers. He knew his limitations and strengths in that last great life, and knowing helped him better this life. He had Soi again, and he would let her know all of him. Somehow he would resolve to make it all work. All of it. But his old doubts sometimes gnawed at his fervent desire to better his life. Old fears and old habits were hard to break from one life to another. Naisen scrubbed his palm against his eyes, willing the old migraine to heel.

His cell phone rang out lowly, portraying a ring tone to an anime that Hiroshi watched with him when they were younger. Naisen reached for it quickly lest his parents waken too early, and cradled it against his bare shoulder.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Naisen….did you?…" Sadako asked.

Naisen leaned back, the sheets pushed back off of his half naked form.

"Yes….I did." Naisen cleared his throat and tried to push the conversation to more of the mundane. "Sadako….

"Dummy…." Sadako chided brightly. "I'll see you on the way to school."

Naisen rose and stretched lightly before dressing in his school's uniform. He combed his hair, and went to eat breakfast with his foster parents. His dad was a very thin man with a pencil mustache and glasses. It was a common occurrence six days a week to see him dressed in suit and tie, looking over business files. His wife was a mirror opposite, plump where he was thin, and dressed in casual clothes around the house.

It was a welcome sight either way. Naisen accepted a kiss from his mother, and a nod from his father, and sat down at the table.

"How is Boshin-san?" Naisen's foster mother asked. Naisen smiled, shoveling rice into his mouth.

"She is well. Mariko-chan is getting huge!"

Naisen's foster father glanced up over the tops of his glasses. "And your girlfriend?"

Naisen's reaction was instantaneous. He blushed, remembering soft curves, warm lower lips against his penis and sad eyes over him. The teen stammered and rubbed his neck softly with one fist as he tried to get out a coherent response

His father raised one pencil-thin eyebrow and smiled wryly. "Just take it carefully, son. I know how it was to be that age."

"Should we talk about…. you know?" Naisens mother suggested. Naisen coughed and sipped his juice, pretending he didn't know he was about to get 'the talk' for the second time in two years.

"I know, Mom! I won't dishonor Sadako-chan," Naisen offered. His thin shoulders tightened as his parents exchanged glances. His mother beamed and ruffled his hair affectionately.

"And the words you use, why you're a man grown already. Have a good day at school, Naisen dear," she said, handing him a wrapped bento box. Naisen accepted it with a shy grin. His father nodded his head to him as per usual, granting him the usual amount of respect.

Naisen reflected that that brief nod of the head was far more knowledgeable of his limitations and strengths than the old Emperor's had been. Naisen blinked the cobwebs from his eyes and made his way to the entryway. He had to separate his mind from what was now and what was past. Sometimes the memories swarmed so thick that he almost called his friends their old names, and he almost wanted to flare out at Mrs. Sukunami.

Hiroshi was a mental slap in the face for keeping his lives separate. Whenever the old feelings of caustic aloofness rose in him, his friend's sharp eyes and questions kept him rooted down. His familiar looks to Suzaku Celestial Star Tamahome sometimes made his heart burn with an unfathomable cold rage. But Naisen had to make due with his memories of his friend that he had known before he had been reawakened to the other life. Hiroshi was his friend, not his enemy.

Naisen greeted him with a smile as usual. Hiroshi's eyes looked as gaunt as they had been ever since his father died last year. His own troubles with his memories were not top priority when his friend and his mother were grieving. So when Hiroshi mumbled a greeting, Naisen gripped his shoulder hard and his friend paused, his eyes seeing something off in the distant. But he shook with emotion as Naisen lent him his unspoken support.

Feeling better, Naisen greeted Sadako with a one-armed hug. Sadako squeezed him and moved to take Hiroshi's arm. By and by she tried to take his mind off of the loss of his father with kind words and gentle touches. Naisen knew Sadako was far more loyal to him than he had ever been to her in the past, and needn't fear any ulterior motive to their blue-haired friend.

Hiroshi may not have shared the holy war in the past, but he was here now and he deserved loyal friendship as much as all of the troubled Seiryu warriors did. Naisen laughed in response to a half-hearted joke Hiroshi made, his eyes glazing in thought as he studied the head of his friend.

Being the son of a priestess of a God, and a reincarnated celestial star bathed Sukunami Hiroshi with a hazy golden light, if one squinted just right. Naisen didn't know if Hiroshi would inherit any special abilities like he and his friends had, but he had a special life ahead of him.

When they reached school, and Toya ambled forward with his morning's greeting, Naisen turned to regard his girlfriend with his slow careful gaze. Sadako's eyes were as sad as they had been in that memory-dream. His mouth straightened to a thin line as he tried to think of what to say to take the sting from that shared memory-dream.

Sadako merely hopped up and kissed his cheek and darted off to her classroom. Naisen sighed, and followed Hiroshi and Toya.

Miaka slept at a secretary's desk, her head cushioned on her arms. She seemed to be so tired lately, even at work. Eri, Yui, and even Sumiyoshi took it easy on her, as grief couldn't be assuaged within the confines of a matter of days, let alone a year. She had lost her cherished soul mate and that would not be healed with the blinking of one year passing.

She could not understand why that disease took Taka from her. She could only grieve, and pray to Suzaku. Often Hiroshi found her clutching a framed picture of a younger version of herself with seven men. As strange as things were now, Miaka knew her son couldn't handle THAT.

Now as a steady line of drool puddle under her cheek and against her arm, Miaka fell into an easy dream-filled sleep. Eri was covering all of the office's calls, and much of her workload, so it was a relief to fall into easy rest. Even if it was just for a moment.

Miaka walked down a rocky barren bath in a desert land. The sun beat hard overhead and perspiration made her blouse cling to her arms and stomach in patches of sweat. This was the border-lining desert near the land of Konan and Miaka remembered the landscape from her first entry to the book world, Yui in tow. She looked around suddenly at the assessment, half expecting to see the pair of bandits who had captured her friend. Their involvement had enticed a passing Tamahome to intervene and save the day, so to speak.

Tamahome…..Taka…. Miaka's heart seized and she swept her gaze to the scraggly trees, the stones and dirt, her emotion in her eyes. This had to be part a memory, for he was not coming to see her. He had passed again, and possibly into the stream to be reborn. She could not count herself fortunate again to see her lover reborn again in this lifetime.

She had traveled a world, befriended celestial warriors, saved others, held the seed and power of a God and saved Tokyo. Tamahome had transcended his role, been reborn in her world, and defeated a Usurper at her side with their friends. They had made a son, and been granted peace and marriage. So many things for one woman to accomplish and proceed through, but she had done it to the best of her ability.

But Taka was gone. And she was alone now in the wake of his passing, too weary to hope for his arrival. She would be an old woman and he would be so young. And that was if he was reborn in this lifetime….

"Why did you take him, Suzaku?" Miaka sank to her knees and covered her face with her palms. The dust of the desert pricked her lashes through her fingers and caressed her tears. Miaka was truly on her way to unleashing another flood of tears when a harsh laugh sounded against the bleak sky and desert sand.

"Hey, lady! What ya doin' just sittin' there? Ya'll get sunstroke!" The voice was young, masculine and just a touch irate. Miaka raised wet eyes to look up. The young man was very tall, and slim with a touch of hard muscle covering his lithe frame. Unruly red hair with the ends dyed black swept past his shirt collar, a loud t-shirt with a catch phrase writ large with bold red letters. 'Reggae Rock n roll style' were the English words on the shirt and Miaka found a moment of absurd hilarity.

If anything, they stopped her tears!

"I…I was lost for a moment….." Miaka made to rise and grimaced as her ankle tucked under her at the wrong angle. The firey-haired youth smirked and extended a large hand down. Miaka had to squint up into the sun as she looked up his body to his face. The sun behind him colored his red head a blaze of gold.

Miaka felt a moment's peace as she laid her hand in his and was pulled to her feet. At the feel of his large warm fingers covering hers, she felt something familiar. The youth grinned rakishly at her. He seemed a confidant man very assured in his interactions with the world, even older attractive women. Or so she was made to think as his eyes gleamed hopefully at her.

"Well, you don't hafta fear, Tetsuo's here! I'm sure we'll find water somewhere. But we don't need the cheese. It won't sustain you," he said and Miaka knew that although his words were strange, of course they made perfect sense in this dream world.

"Okay! Wherever you would have me, we'll be safe." Were had those words come from? This dream was a strange one at any rate. She could almost expect to see dragons of the west flapping their wings overhead as the youth lead her through the dirt and rocks and sand. Passing one boulder covered with slices of cheese helped the ethereal reality present itself.

"You are always safe. With me. I will keep you safe," the youth named Tetsuo promised. He stood tall and Miaka saw him grip an iron fan tightly with one fist suddenly. Although he wore only the funny t-shirt, jeans and sneakers, the dusty wind blew the edges of a black coat around his form, soft as a whisper and delicate as a bubble. Just as tender as a soap bubble, the coat of dust vanished into the sky.

Miaka stared up into Tetsuo's earnest and tender eyes, awed at the vow of protection laced through his words and in his being. And as she tried to remember who this was, her lips formed the words instinct felt in her belly.

"You have always kept me safe…."

And Miaka woke, her arm fairly damp, and her mind and heart confused.

In Hokkaido, one red-haired teen was screamed at for falling asleep in class and made to stand in the hallway.

Woman and student both wondered the ramifications of such a fantastical meeting.

"What does it mean?" Miaka murmured, sorting paperwork with Eri.

"What was that about?" Tetsuo mumbled, balancing on one foot then to another.

"Hey! Sadako!" a male voice called out. Sadako froze, cringing.

'Please, don't let it be him….' She mentally begged. Fate was not kind in this moment, for the voice heralded Noriyoshi, the tallest boy in Naisen's class and residential creep. Every girl in his class had been hit on by him, and depending on if they fell for his greasy charms, had a variety of horror stories about the overconfident youth. Now that he had run out of game in his year, he started working on the younger year classes.

And recently he had landed on trying to win over Sadako with a vengeance.

"What is it, Noriyoshi-kun?" Sadako asked politely. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited to hear what his excuse was this day.

The tall handsome youth grinned and raked a hand through his spiky bangs.

"Oh nothing, just wondering if you wanted to go out with me today. Just coffee if you have too much homework." The suggestion may have been kind if he hadn't been leering at the mention of too much work for the younger year. Sadako's spine straightened and she raised a cool eyebrow.

It wasn't like she was unused to dealing with undesired men in the last life. Her strength and beauty had won her a myriad of men who wanted to possess her, or BE possessed by her. She had had the power of the storms to aid her then, and she had it now. She knew control however, and wouldn't just lance a lightning bolt through the hall window, no matter how desired that result could be. Even that may be seem out of place, so Sadako was resolved to get out of the unwanted situation with words alone.

"I am sincerely sorry…." Sadako tried not to smile at her own wording. "But we second years have far too much schoolwork! Perhaps another time."

'Yeah, when the devil becomes an Olympic ice skater.'

Noriyoshi did not look amused. His handsome face was flushed with anger.

"Who do you think you…." he started when a hand landed on his shoulder.

"What's going on here?" Naisen asked. Noriyoshi fumed in his face, but the blond could have been sculpted of ice; he did not move easily in the wake of sullen rage.

"Nothing's going on….. let's just go, Naisen," Sadako suggested. Naisen's large fingers were clenched hard, the knuckles white over the boy's shoulder. But let him go he did. Sadako dared to put her arm through Naisen's as they walked off.

Naisen sighed and looked down at his girlfriend. "Does he always bother you? He doesn't have the best reputation you know."

"I know….." Sadako laid her head against his shoulder briefly. The fabric of his uniform jacket scratched her cheek.

Naisen's hands unclenched again and looked down over his girlfriend's red hair. Her face was flushed, and she looked momentarily at ease. Jerks like Noriyoshi were many and close between, it seemed. He titled Sadako's chin up and kissed her shortly. They pulled apart just as a teacher came bustling up to stop any hanky-panky at their school.

When Toya and Hiroshi met up with Naisen and Sadako after school, someone else was there to visit the group as they banded together for the walk home.

"What does HE want?" Toya asked, flipping the ends of his long hair over one delicate shoulder. Noriyoshi glowered behind them, following at a distance. Maybe he truly did fear any prowess of Naisen's that he radiated, but they all could see he was marshalling some courage for a confrontation.

"He just doesn't know when to quit!" Sadako groaned. Naisen squeezed her fingers and let her hand go.

"We may have to deal with him, either way," he promised, his voice low. Sadako looked up to see his forehead traced with an ancient character. It wasn't glowing yet, but if Naisen couldn't control his rising anger, it would flare bright enough.

"Come on, Noriyoshi, leave us alone," Hiroshi offered gallantly, his voice not unkind. Noriyoshi ignored the blue-haired boy and sidled up to Sadako. He didn't see her hand on Naisen's arm, or ignored it outright. Putting on a sickly sweet smile, he put an arm between his target and foe, effectively separating them.

Naisen looked surprised, while Toya flashed a glare at the playboy. Hiroshi shook his head. Sadako just looked mad. Having your arm jerked forward when you didn't want to be touched would do that.

"I'm not talking to you," Noriyoshi didn't look at any of the other boys. He had eyes only for Sadako. Flashing that weak smile again, he leaned close. "What say you and I go for that coffee? We can be alone out of this crowd and no one could bother us."

There had been a chance of rain since earlier in the morning, but now the scant few clouds in the sky grouped together swiftly, banding out of Sadako's anger and frustration.

"I told you, no! I don't want to go out with you," Sadako hissed. Naisen's eyes glazed in cold rage.

"The lady told you no. Let her go…." Naisen warned. Noriyoshi laughed, and tightened his hold on Sadako's arm, making her cry out. When was this jerk ever strong? Being held down against her will reminded her of darker times when her father yelled horribly, and even darker in the other great life. Her fear threatened to overwhelm her….

When she was let go suddenly, thrust aside as Hiroshi and Naisen sprang forward to intercept their arrogant peer. Sadako fell to her knees from the abruptness of it all. Hiroshi howled vengeance as he and Naisen grappled with the taller boy and Sadako was aware of Toya's hands on her arms, helping her to stand as they witnessed the tussle before them. When had Hiroshi become so valiant for her safety? So caring? He always had been but seeing him defend her….If she hadn't been in love with Naisen already, she would have seen Hiroshi in a more loving light. She didn't care for him any less as he moved as one with Naisen. They looked as if they had fought together all of their days.

Naisen growled as Noriyoshi threw both of them off him and landed glancing punches off of his jaw, and across Hiroshi's eye. His friend was panting, beyond rage for their friend as he stood at Naisen's side, fists clenched. Naisen grasped Hiroshi's shoulder, never taking his eyes off of Noriyoshi's mocking grin.

"Don't, Hiroshi. He's mine," Naisen commanded. Hiroshi paused under the terse strict tone his friend used so easily and backed off. A man needed to fight his own battles sometimes even if two were better against one large opponent.

"Go on, Naisen. But if he knocks you out, I'll take him down for you."

Naisen shook his head, his eyes as blue as a glacier and just as cold as he rubbed at his jaw with one bruised fist. "You're going to regret doing that to my girlfriend. Sadako doesn't want to see you, or anyone like you. You should accept defeat and run."

Noriyoshi spat and raised his fists in the air.

"What say we settle this already? I want to get going on our date already," he leered. Naisen shook his head. If he just acquiesced, he would get out without any more hurts. Really, sometimes men were just stupid.

"She doesn't want to go out with you!" Naisen swore. Hiroshi called encouragement behind him. Sadako looked around nervously as the half empty schoolyard began to fill up again. A crowd of their peers was forming and if any powers were used, there would be witnesses. They couldn't have that…. Cold sweat beaded on the reincarnated girl's brow and she felt Toya's fingers grip her shoulders hard enough to hurt.

"Toya…." She whispered. She didn't have to say another word. Toya nodded, watching the spectacle before them as Hiroshi cheered like a loon.

"I've brought a clam…. And it's going to be okay, Sadako-chan," he whispered. The thunder roiled overhead and Sadako felt more at ease.

As well at ease as she could be as her young boyfriend traded blows with the tall student. Punches were exchanged as well as curses, the verbal on Noriyoshi's side. Naisen only grunted, his eyes gleaming with a mad anger. Rain began to fall over everyone. Some of the crowd dispersed, thrusting books and bags up to cover them from the wet as they ran for shelter. Others remained, calling out taunts or cheers. Sumiyoshi stepped back into a large puddle and the thunder pealed hard overhead.

Toya's hands clenched Sadako's wet shirt and she heard him whistle under his breathe. A long jagged lightning bolt darted down, as if drawn to the puddle beneath the boy's feet.

"Sadako!…"

Sadako heard her friend whisper far-off over her shoulder and she furrowed her brow. Willing her power to be used only a fraction of a fraction's worth, she guided the lightning down to strike the pavement before Noriyoshi, scaring the boy witless and side-zapping his feet from the water's current. But otherwise, leaving the boy unharmed.

Naisen looked up, and caught Sadako's wild eyes. He ended it with one savage punch to the boy's cheek, knocking him down. His power laced between his hands suddenly, chi as erratic as his wildly thumping heart and darting eyes.

"Hey what's that on his forehead?" one girl called out. Many answered her questioning derision and Naisen flashed a startled look towards his friends. Hiroshi nudged Noriyoshi with his foot, and did not notice.

Sadako looked over her shoulder to see Toya thrust one hand into his pants pocket. He did not draw out his tool for illusion and thus his spell was cast in secret. The students around them blinked hard, and turned to walk away, instantly forgetting all they had witnessed after school. Noriyoshi closed his eyes and took a nap in the rain.

Hiroshi, Naisen, Sadako and Toya all regrouped to exchange a quick word, then ran off as one down the street.

"Did you see that lightning? It was incredible! And what great timing," Hiroshi marveled as he held his uniform jacket over his head. His bangs plastered to his forehead nevertheless. The three reincarnated seishi exchanged glances and joked it off with their friend.

By the time they had reached the shrine where Mitsuko lived, they were half soaked through, but in better spirits. Their friend greeted them with a shout, and gestured the four students into the shrine, drops sliding down his shaved head as he held the door for them.

Soon Mitsuko had hot tea poured for his friends and reincarnated comrades, and his senior priest had handed out towels. Sadako scrubbed at her wet hair, but the hardwood floors were beaded with small puddles beneath them. Hiroshi shook off like a dog, making Toya complain for the extra shower. Mitsuko laughed and inquired to their escapade as Naisen looked bruised.

And Naisen…. Naisen leaned against Sadako as he sipped at tea, silent as he savored her shivering warmth. Sadako smiled up at the warmth in his blue eyes and took his hand between hers. As their friends laughed and joked around them, she kissed his fingertips. The small silent promise in the gesture seared Naisen's heart, but thrust warmth throughout him.

Their parents may not want them together yet, but their adult minds wanted to consummate their feelings physically. The small gestures Sadako pressed onto Naisen made his blood throb. And it made him feel good, a whole man with her.

Boshin Yui stood at the closed balcony to her family's apartment and watched the storm outside. The rains and thunder lashed Tokyo with almost playful regard to people's plans. It had been angry before, but now joyful in its play. This was Sadako-chan's doing wasn't it? She would have to talk to her about controlling her power…. But the fact the storm had lightened up within minutes spoke for her attempts at control. Yui wondered if Sadako was with Naisen and being very happy right now.

Saito came up behind her and wrapped his arms around Yui's waist. "Why do you watch the storm so?" he murmured. His heart throbbed to bursting with the love he held for his wife and she leaned back against his welcome warmth.

"It makes me think of our friends," she confessed and Saito needn't ask which friends. Each visit with Naisen and Sadako, and their friends told him all he needed to remember.

"You have a large heart, Yui," he whispered, kissing her neck affectionately. "You would have everyone as happy because you are…"

Yui nodded and brought her arm back to run her fingers through his sandy hair.

"I would…. but I'm trying to help them. They haven't had the best time revealing their emotions.."

Saito nodded and when Mariko came running up to throw her arms around their legs, he didn't ask further.

End for now

The slogan on Dream Tetsuo's shirt was from a very insane Simpsons episode. Points if you guess which one. The mention of cheese in a desert is from a dream episode of Buffy, season four finale.

My thoughts on grief are mentioned in this chapter. The comment about grief not being gone in say, one year, is directed at my hateful ex. She's never lost a parent (or both in my case) so was rather not understanding about my feelings regarding grief. To each their own, I suppose.

Like it? Hate it? Send a review! Review is crack to fanfiction authors.

Most sincerely yours, penpaninu 1/21/06


	3. Dreaming is Believing

Once again we're at another chapter. Thanks for the reviews from KittyLynne, black panther, FushigiYugifan, Nuni-chan and others. This chapter is dedicated to Kittylynne, my celestial partner of words and prose.

When the darkness of winter recedes (and indeed it has been a false winter, it's not even cold outside) I find myself falling back to nostalgic wants. Lately I've been rereading my Akira manga, and its always every January or later when I read this yearly. So of course, I'm getting more want to write my own Tetsuo, who won't be as friendless as he was in the Akira story.

Akira property of Otomo Katusuhiro and Streamline Pictures and other studios. Not to penpaninu. I just use one of his characters names for an reincarnation of another character who does not belong to me.

Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi and is not being paid to write this. Only my reviews are payment in full.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter three

Dreaming is Believing

"Slowly. Easy now," Saito said. He twirled a small rubber ball between his fingertips as he instructed his friend. Naisen sat cross-legged, eyes closed as he tried to concentrate. Asakura sat casually, one leg crooked over his knee as he played a light tune on his flute. Saito watched his brother with a hint of sadness in his eyes and let the ball spin into the air, guided by his power.

Asakura opened one eye without breaking melody. The siblings locked eyes.

A line of sweat trickled down Naisen's brow. "It's hard," he murmured.

Saito snapped the ball from midair and juggled it in his palm.

"I know," he said. "Concentrate harder. Picture nothingness. Walk through the grayness of it. There is only silence…."

Asakura closed his eyes and leaned back, fingers nimbly plucking out another kind tune. The vibrations he sent through the room were careful gestures intended for tranquility. Saito flashed a mental thanks to his brother and watched Naisen.

The familiar arcane symbol outlined itself across Naisen's brow. His long blond bangs wavered with an unseen breeze, a high indication of his chi building. Saito leaned forward, the lines at the corners of his eyes crinkling as he narrowed his vision solely on his celestial brother. His fingers gripped together around the rubber sphere in his grasp. Asakura's melody quickened in tempo.

Naisen hissed under his breathe, but tightened his stomach muscles as Saito had taught him. He raised one palm and blue light surrounded it, illuminating the lines cut in his flesh. He closed his palms, and exhaled soundlessly, one long drawn out release. The light flickered and went out carefully, as Naisen intended it to.

Asakura stopped playing and cradled his flute in his lap, clapping his hands for his friend's effort. Saito laughed and let the ball float playfully between his fingers in triumph.

"Well done, Naisen-kun! Mitsuko really taught you some useful meditative concentrations, huh?" he asked. Naisen smiled slowly, his blue eyes cool. But he looked pleased.

"No more than you help me, Saito-san," Naisen crossed his arms and leaned back smugly. A cry sounded from the doorway and a small child ran for Saito, little legs pumping hard. Saito dropped the rubber ball and opened his arms wide for his daughter. Mariko crashed hard into his chest and squealed as she was swung up into the air. Asakura tucked his flute away and rose to greet his niece.

"Are you done yet?" Mariko asked breathlessly as Saito swung her up and down, then drew her close for a kiss. Saito nodded, his eyes crinkling kindly. Not quite thirty and happiness already lined his eyes.

"Of course! Did you want to play?" He asked. Mariko nodded rapidly and hopped down to pounce on her uncle.

"Whoa, hey, easy there, princess! You'll squash me!" Asakura suggested. Mariko crowed and hugged his neck.

"No I won't! You're strong, Uncle Asakura-san," she beamed. Asakura hugged her close and cradled her thin legs.

Naisen leaned back on his hands, exhaling carefully. His head slowly felt at ease after that exercise and he smiled as his energetic 'foster sister' sprang out of Asakura's arms to crash into him head-on.

"Easy there, Mariko-chan. Do you want to see Sadako-chan again soon?" he asked. Mariko nodded, and tucked her head under his chin. Naisen patted her back easily.

Saito turned to greet his wife. Yui smiled widely, her beautiful eyes lighting up. He gave her a soft kiss.

"How was Miaka-san?" he whispered. Yui's eyes softened and she shook her head softly. Her mouth was a thin line. Saito's heart clenched and he kissed her brow.

"We'll visit her tonight. How does that sound?"

Yui smiled and hugged him. Mariko bounced up and down on Naisen's tummy.

"We're going to see Hiroshi-kun and Aunt Miaka? Yeah!" she crowed. Naisen groaned under her hops.

While the young family prepared to visit the Sukunami household, the phone rang halting their preparations.

"I'll get it," Yui offered and patted her daughter's head as she picked up the cordless. Mariko grinned and dashed off to get her jacket. Saito adjusted his sweater and waited. Yui watched her family, and turned her attention to the mouthpiece.

"Hello? Boshin residence." The ring on her left hand sparkled as she tapped her fingers on the coffeetable.

"Hello? Yui?" The voice was as familiar to her as her past. Yui smiled kindly and leaned back on the couch.

"Hello, Tetsuya. How are you doing lately?" She and her old lover had never fallen out of touch and had remained friends. He had been invited to the wedding, and had brought a lovely young intern from his office. Incidentally, it was the same young woman Yui had spotted at a visit to his worked and who had instigated a heart-to-heart with Tetsuya that had resulted in their break-up. Yui didn't let it bother her, and wished Tetsuya all the happiness he could get.

Her friend didn't sound none too happy, and obviously was trying to cover up his true emotion. He was possibly afraid Saito was around, and listening in. Male pride hit hard sometimes.

"They're going okay, I suppose….." Tetsuya sighed and paused. "Is Saito-san nearby?"

"Yes, he's right here," Yui offered. Saito raised an eyebrow and picked up Mariko. The little girl hugged her father around the neck.

"Oh…" Tetsuya, a seemingly confident man, erred to shyness with those he knew best and he now showed that shyness. He stammered and coughed, and Yui waited patiently as she had several times before.

'One time he was so shy, he had asked me out for our first date…' That made Yui sad suddenly.

"You can tell me, Tetsuya," she said sweetly. 'Tetsuya?' Saito mouthed. Yui nodded. He shrugged and grinned good-naturedly. Mariko kissed his cheek and sprang down to run to the kitchen. Saito ambled after her. Yui mentally thanked Seiryu for sending her husband to her and turned her attention to the conversation at hand.

Yui could have sworn she heard a watery chuckle high overhead as Tetsuya sighed and sniffed. "Tetsuya? Are you crying?"

"Uhm hmm," Tetsuya said. He made a shuddering sound and Yui gripped the phone, concerned for him.

"What happened? Do you want to talk about it?" she asked. Tetsuya gave an affirmative and paused once more. Yui waited as patiently as she always did for him.

"Do you remember the girl I was seeing after we moved out?" he asked. Yui said she did. "Emiko…. well, I didn't think she would ever you know….aw, Yui, I caught her in bed with someone else."

Yui gasped, her eyebrow rising. She suddenly felt bad for her ex, and saddened. "Oh, Tetsuya…. are you okay? Do you need anything?"

Tetsuya sniffed, sounding clogged with tears. "I just need someone to hear this…can't talk to Keisuke yet, you know how it is with the guys."

Yui knew Keisuke wasn't the type of friend to rag on Tetsuya for something like this happening, but she let him get it off his chest.

"I understand, Tetsuya…. When did this happen?" she asked worriedly.

"Two hours ago. Yui, why did she do this to me? Am I so unlikable?"

"No, Tetsuya, you're a sweet loving man…..I can't tell you why she would do this to you. I guess it's safe to ask if it's over?….." Yui asked. Tetsuya sighed.

"Yes, I asked her to leave…. But what am I going to do? No woman's going to want to go out with me," Tetsuya lamented. Yui assured him that all would be well, and arranged to have a lunch date with her and Mariko.

"Always for two beautiful women," Tetsuya agreed, sounding a little better. Yui smiled and bid him a fond farewell. Hanging up the phone, she stared into space. Her present almost receded from her and she saw a tall man wearing shades before her, waving. Tetsuya….

"Yui?" Saito's deep voice intoned behind her. Yui shook the cobwebs from her mind and turned to smile at her family.

"I'm ready. Shall we go visit Aunt Miaka-san?" Yui smiled. Mariko cheered.

Hiroshi answered the Sukunami door and greeted Yui and Saito amiably. Mariko, he hugged and tugged inside. The little girl giggled and clung to his slim waist.

"Where's your mother?" Yui asked as they stepped out of their shoes at the entryway. Hiroshi sighed, darkness shading his thoughtful eyes.

"She's at the family altar…." Was all he said. Saito and Yui looked at each other and went into the adjoining room.

Sukunami Miaka knelt before the altar, her hands pressed together for prayer. Yui touched her shoulder and Miaka gave a start, and looked up. She smiled then, lines pulling at the sides of her tired eyes. She just looked so exhausted.

"How are you doing, Miaka-san?" Saito asked gently. Miaka wiped her eyes and rose to her feet.

"As well as can be…..I must apologize for not being more prepared, but I'm afraid I may have dozed in my prayers," Miaka brushed her hair back from her face. Yui smiled and kissed her cheek. When Miaka turned into Saito's arms for a hug, she almost fell off her feet.

"Miaka-san!" he exclaimed, gently shaking her. "Are you even sleeping at all? You have to take care of yourself!" Yui shook Miaka's arm gently, her face a mask of concern.

"I'm just so tired, I don't know why. Well, let's just have dinner. Did you bring Mariko-chan?" Miaka lit up. It was a smile of her former self but Yui would take it.

"She's off tormenting Hiroshi as always," she laughed. Saito turned to the altar.

"We'll offer some incense if you don't mind."

"Please do…. Well I'll be in the kitchen," Miaka said. Yui lit a stick of incense, prayed and stood it before the portrait of Taka in a pot of sand. She stared at his shy brave smile framed for eternity and the cobwebs of her mind took over once again.

'You're nothing but a character inside a book!' No, you were never make-believe, Taka. You were Tamahome and he was real enough for Miaka to love…

"My turn, Yui," Saito said with ready ease and lit his own stick for Taka's departed spirit. Yui gripped his shoulder as he prayed then the two rose to join their friend for dinner.

High above the heavens, Suzaku and Seiryuu stared at each other and shrugged.

Miaka seemed to have come to the conclusion that praying to Suzaku often would forgive the sin she felt for dreaming constantly about someone other than her late husband. The youth Tetsuo made his ways to her again and again and while other women her age would have teased her for dreaming of a man young enough to be her son, the dreams were not of the erotic kind.

They were deeper and in their fanciful wanderings in dreamscapes, they seemed to walk a courtship ritual of hands touching, words spoken with great affection and genuine trust exchanged. Miaka knew she shouldn't be thinking of any other man after Taka, and perhaps no other man could compare to his sizeable shoes, but she knew she could not deny she looked forward to those dreams.

For a few moments, she was rested and she was wanted and it made her feel good. Then the guilt would come and she would try to pray for her forgiveness. Suzaku may have disagreed with her, for her incense sticks burned out completely after she applied flame to the ends, and deep chuckles filled her ears as she desperately tried to relight.

"Mom, what are you doing?" Hiroshi asked as he caught his mother at the required moment of frustration. Miaka put down the matches and winced up at her son.

"The gods I think don't want me to pray today," she confessed. Hiroshi smiled finally and touched her shoulder.

"Come on then! Can you help me with my homework then?" Hiroshi pleaded. Miaka blinked and let him help her to her feet. It surprised her that she came only to Hiroshi's shoulders. When had he grown so tall and strong?

"Of course I will. Show me what you have trouble with," Miaka said. Hiroshi smiled happily as they left the altar behind them. The smile in Taka's portrait seemed to smile sadly.

Tetsuo sketched half-formed characters in the margins of his notebook. They all started with M and if he let himself swallow his confusion he surely would write out the rest of his dream partner's name. Miaka. Miaka-san, as he would be supposed to call her due to age difference and social standing. She was old enough to be his mother! At least, maybe a hot older sister or something…

There was no denying that Tetsuo was attracted to the older woman he saw in his dreams almost every time he closed his eyes to sleep. She had already had another man, but she may have been free from that tie to enjoy his company. They had such a good time together, walking through desert landscapes, riding on the backs of serpentine dragons and swimming through liquid as firey as alcohol. With the last few weeks of high school cracking down in a fine schedule of tests, college exams and other social niceties, these pleasurable dreams were welcomed by the tall red-haired student.

The ends of his longish hair brushed past the collar of his uniform jacket daringly, and hung dark and black with the dye that attempted to keep his appearance in conformity. His partial European fore sire's temperance came through smack on him in the line and Tetsuo didn't mind the gaijin hair coloring. It was natural anyway, and besides the punk look for his peers was to dye their hair blond anyway. What was so strange from jumping from blond to red?

Miaka had said she liked the look on him anyway. She said he looked a foreign prince, but she did not mean it to be a barb as some of the popular snotty girls in class had done. Tetsuo only turned his nose down on such false companionship and retorted with a tongue-lashing that would have done his past life with pride. The look on that girl's face had been worth the effort in any case, even if it had earned him demerits and detention.

As Tetsuo walked home, he waved to friends and girls who he had gone out with large smile and ready hand. It was bittersweet, but as his high school days were coming to a close, he knew he would be moving beyond his small home town in Hokkaido, and would pursue what others would call their dreams. His dreams were vivid and filled with a very real woman, of which Tetsuo had no doubt he knew before. Call him crazy or deranged, but he knew he would be in the right about this. He knew where his heart lay.

And unfortunately, it wasn't with Kaoru, with Chiyoko, with Miyako. He had had a fine time with some of those girls before the dreams had started, and had given his virginity with ready ease. Tetsuo wasn't sad he had known other girls before his dream woman had asserted herself into his heart. He wasn't unexperienced, so he wouldn't disappoint her, right?

When he came home, his mother bustled for his attention with several replies from colleges across the islands.

"Your best answer has come from Honshu! Won't you think of going there?" his mother pleaded. Tetsuo gave that one barely a glance and crumpled it up for a ball to toss at the trashcan.

"Only ones from Tokyo, Mom. I want to go there for schooling," Tetsuo asserted his wish. His mother faltered then berated him for a single-minded boy.

"What on earth is in Tokyo, but higher living expenses? Keep in mind, boy, that your father will be paying for your college, and we don't need unwanted expenditures wasted! Are you even listening to me? What on all of the kami's green earth is in Tokyo that isn't here, or Shikoku, or Kyushu, or Honshu?" his mother fished out the reply for that college and thrust it into her son's face.

Tetsuo watched her hop up and down to try and reach his impressive height and sighed. "I get good enough grades, Mama, leave me alone about it. It's Tokyo, or no college at all."

"Will you just answer my question? What's in Tokyo that's not here?"

Tetsuo sighed and looked out the kitchen window at the country stars. "The answer to my dreams…. that's all."

"Foolish boy! Chasing after stars in his heads….."

Tetsuo reflected his mother was half right. The stars in his head all wore characters on various parts of their bodies and stood seven-as-one under the plumed fire bird. Tetsuo's right forearm burned and he clutched it desperately with his left hand.

He would be following his destiny, and fate must be kind that it would be in some woman's arms.

"I don't like riding the rails this late at night," Sadako said. She clung to Naisen's arm and stared over his shoulder. That creepy man was back this night, and his eyes always seemed to rove over them trying to pick apart their weaknesses.

"It's alright, Sadako. No one will harm you as long as you're with me," he assured her. Sadako laid her head on his shoulder and sighed.

"I know, but …. some people would try anyway," she said fretfully. Naisen patted her back and watched the small trickles of humanity at the station as they waited for the last train of the night.

"The city is safe enough, and I won't let anything happen to you," Naisen promised. Sadako smiled and waited for their train.

The ride back was quiet and uneventful but the two didn't feel they had to fill their moments together with frivolous talk. They knew each other enough. It hurt, but Naisen felt stronger for opening himself up to her even more. Sadako did not laugh, or tell anyone without his leave. And he had her support and love.

When he walked her to her family's apartment, Naisen tried to move his darkness to speak the words that had plagued him lately.

"Sadako," he began when she hugged his neck and kissed his ear. He shivered. "You remember when we were in grade school and that man hurt me….does it…."

Sadako kissed his lips sweetly and shut him up. "It wasn't your fault, and you didn't ask for it. You didn't ask for it ever, and I know how much it hurt you."

Naisen looked at her with wet eyes and smiled gratefully. Sadako kissed the tears from his eyelids and they separated for the night.

"I'll see you tomorrow."

"With Hiroshi and Toya, yes…. good night my warrior."

"Good night, Sadako-cahn."

End for now

Like it? Hate it? Please review. It's crack for fanfiction authors.

Most sincerely yours, penpaninu 2/01/06


	4. Uniting Memories

Most of this chapter was taken over by a specific scene. I tried to make it clean-cut for its appearance on and I hope all will enjoy it.

I myself am funnily enough not the biggest Seiryuu fan, but found myself wanting to do a different kind of fanfiction, so I landed on reincarnation, mainly a Seiryuu seishi reincarnation fic. The Suzaku ones, my favorites, are finding their ways in, but Naisen has stolen my heart at the moment.

Once again, this chapter is dedicated to Miss KittyLynne. Her kind words are always an inspiration and a blessing. It is rare to find such sincere honesty in this world, and I cherish such friendships.

Also dedication in part to Fushigiyugifan, Nuni-chan, the black panther, and others. If I forgot a name, I sincerely apologize.

Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi nor is making any money off of this.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter four

Uniting Memories

"We're finally summoning Seiryuu," the most familiar voice in the world said to her. Yui nodded, rubbing her palms up and down her naked form. She stood thigh-high in tepid water, going through the motions of purifying herself; even if it was just for ceremonial show.

Yui's body was thinner, her breasts high as she looked down at her self. Her hair was its old short length, cut stylishly before the opening of the book. Her heart was weary and frightened, and she longed to fall into the comforting words of the young man behind her.

"Yes… but I'm afraid…" She heard herself say the words she had said before. 'My husband, please don't leave me…'

Suboshi handed back a towel for Yui as he heard her step from the bath. He chivalrously did not look at her bare form. Yui quietly thanked him for the gesture as she accepted the towel and wrapped it round her shaking form.

"Why are you afraid?" Suboshi asked, and seeing she was covered, stood behind her. Yui's small shoulders trembled. 'You must hate me remembering this…. Why did you come back to me after I sent you to your death?' she thought.

"I'm afraid of myself," Yui whispered. She thought the words, then they leaked out to the man she trusted with all of her heart. The younger past version of the man she wed embraced her gently, arms folded over her shoulders and away from her breasts.

His face was upon her shoulder. "I won't let anything happen to you. I will protect you, Yui-san…."

Yui woke with a start, and panted quietly. She swept a hand through her long bangs, feeling cold sweat beaded upon her brow. She sighed and looked down at her husband. Saito slumbered at her side, naked but for his shorts, one arm stretched over his head as he snored at the ceiling. He was beautiful and strong and Yui's age-old doubts receded carefully. She leaned and kissed Saito's parted lips tenderly and burrowed against his side.

As she drifted off to sleep, she felt Saito's arm drape warmly around her hip. And she knew he did not begrudge her his early death in the last life for he had died fighting for her.

"That creepy man is back again," Sadako whispered. Naisen looked over the top of her head to regard the shaggy man once more. He was obviously homeless, and whenever they rode the train home, for he always seemed to be there. Maybe he rode the trains all day long, but Naisen only thought that the security of this rail station was becoming quite lax if he could dodge confrontation for this long.

Naisen wrapped his arm over Sadako's shoulder and nuzzled her hair. Sadako closed her eyes as she rested against him, but he kept his gaze half-slit. The dirty man shambled close, re-evaluated what he was about to do, and continued on. Naisen's eyes moved to follow him as the rest of him remained still for Sadako. He liked being a pillow, but he wouldn't disturb her rest. Drat, now that man had gone around the corner. How could he know what he was doing now?

The train whipped past their bench and came to a skidding halt. Their coats bannered around them and their long hair flew over their shoulders. Naisen nudged Sadako as the doors of the train pinged open.

"Sadako, hurry up. We have to get on the train," he urged her gently. Sadako opened her eyes and went in with Naisen, yawning. Just as the doors began to slide shut behind the few passengers climbing on, a figure whipped into the compartment. The doors shut on the back of his coat and he gave a mighty grunt and yanked valiantly.

Naisen groaned mentally. The homeless man was in their compartment and obviously eyeing them with interest. Sadako noticed him and clenched his coat sleeve.

"He's here, he followed us," she whispered. Naisen hugged her shoulder.

"It's okay, don't look at him. He won't hurt you."

Sadako trembled the whole ride home, and Naisen was proven wrong as the man ambled after them. Naisen looked over his shoulder and mentally groaned again. Why couldn't the train doors have stopped on him again? He didn't look drunk this time, just determined as he swayed and strode after them. Sadako grasped Naisen's arm sharply through his coat sleeve. He could feel her fingers pinching a mark into his flesh through the clothing.

The man tugged Naisen's shoulder and whirled him around. Naisen was ready for him, and he almost ignored Sadako's gasp as he focused on the unshaven lout before him.

"That girl don't wanna go home with you. Let me take her," the man leered. Naisen grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. The man grunted and howled, then bulled over into Naisen, startling him. He wasn't supposed to fight back this well! He was supposed to go down and leave Sadako in safety. Naisen went down on the ground, his cheek thudding into the subway tiles. The man leaped onto his back and tried to throttle him clumsily.

Naisen saw red for a moment, as he lay there stunned. The man grabbed a handful of Naisen's long hair and tried to slam his head into the ground to put him out, as trying to choke him did not make him lose consciousness easily. The power surged to his third eye and the intricate symbol flared upon Naisen's forehead as his rage flared out of control.

He could dimly hear Sadako screaming. Naisen pushed the sound to the back of his mind as he rose to his knees, the power coursing through his veins. His bangs flew upward, as the blue light formed the character of his celestial star upon his brow. The man grunted in surprise and grabbed his neck again. Naisen turned and whipped his arm sharply, thrusting hard at his opponent. The man sniffed in indifference before his eyes bulged comically as Naisen grabbed _his_ throat and proceeded to choke _him_ to unconsciousness.

"Naisen! Naisen, don't kill him! Naisen!"

Naisen could hear his girlfriend dimly as if she spoke through water. Water… a clawed reptilian hand slashed through the natural element and knocked Naisen's head half off.

'Respect your enemy. And you will respect yourself,' the ancient voice whispered from on high. Naisen cowered, cringing in the back of his mind as his god spoke so to him. He let the bum down and knelt over him, his heart clenching hard for release. His breath came ragged and swift.

From far away, he could hear a new male intrusion speaking to Sadako. She had flagged down a passing police officer and they stood over him. Naisen blinked exhausted eyes and barely took in the officer's questions, his words of concern washing over him.

His gaze swept over to his girlfriend and the tears in her eyes. Naisen tipped forward as his brain then shut down. Sadako caught him and shook him, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Miss, is he alright? Is he okay?" the officer asked, looking up from the homeless man. Sadako shook her head as she hugged Naisen's wide shoulders. His head lolled against her shoulder. Naisen dimly heard deep chuckling in the back of his mind and the clawed hand swiped him again. His head jerked up.

"I'm okay! I'm fine!" he all but screamed in Sadako's ear. She winced but held him upright. Naisen worked the muscles in his legs, found he could use them, and stood up with minimal help. Sadako was against his side the whole time. Any other time he would have flustered and turned red at the closeness of her young curves against him, but tonight he only savored her concern.

The officer nodded, and hauled up the bum. They all went to the station so the kids could file a report, and finally the officer let them go home.

Naisen walked Sadako home and didn't let her out of his sight the whole way. At her apartment door, they faltered and looked at each other. The night turned out to be rainy once they left the subway station and the two of them were positively soaked through. Sadako looked up into her boyfriend's eyes, and her heart skipped a beat at the intensity in his own heated gaze even as his long bangs plastered to his brow and against his cheeks.

Naisen's gaze softened further, as Sadako reached up to push the bangs from his eyes, and he almost swooned at the spark that her touch caused. She inspired his flesh to heat even as rainwater dampened his skin and clothing. Opening his eyes, he looked down at her. The polite thing to do would be to leave her and go home back to his foster parents. They were too young to fulfill their emotional wants and were obligated to listen to their parent's wishes.

The right thing to do would be to leave now and leave things as they were. But neither wanted to.

"So…" Naisen cleared his throat. "I'll see you tomorrow…." Tomorrow was a Sunday. Tomorrow everything would be normal again.

Sadako nodded, disappointment clouding her gaze. "Oh…"

Naisen's heart cinched almost in two at that clipped word of grave sorrow. His hands reached for her, helpless.

"Sure, Naisen…I'll see you tomorrow…" Their hands touched briefly, and as Sadako unlocked her door, he held onto that hand tenderly. Sadako almost pulled him in, he simply would not let go.

When their fingers finally parted, Naisen swallowed hard. His sadness fell into the pit of his stomach and formed a knot. He was almost ill with the severe loss of what was his to take and it was reflected in Sadako's sad, sad eyes.

It was a long walk back to his home. Naisen's mother waited up for him and fed him with the leftovers of the evening meal. Naisen's father was already asleep, exhausted from work. Naisen briefly talked to his mother, but obviously his mind was elsewhere. All too soon he was in his room, preparing for bed. He began to peel off his wet shirt when his cell phone buzzed a warning in his pocket.

Naisen tugged the phone out nimbly, amazed that it had not gotten wet at all after that excursion in the rain. He clicked it on and held it to his ear.

"Naisen…." The electronic whisper was as familiar to him as his memory-dreams. Naisen swallowed hard, his spine straightening.

"Sadako…." He whispered. He licked his lip and swallowed hard again. "What is it?" He stayed quiet for his parent's sake.

Sadako sighed on the other end. "Please…" she whispered. Naisen frowned slightly, not wanting her to beg, to ask as she had in the last life. She didn't have to!

"Please….." she continued. "I need you. I don't care if we're young…. I want you."

Her soft words made Naisen swallow the words his parents would have wanted him to say, how young they were, how unready they were, how they shouldn't… He tugged his shirt back on one-handed.

"I'm on my way. But what about?…"

"Don't worry…" Sadako whispered. "My parents are out of town this weekend."

Naisen snuck out carefully and quietly locked the door behind him.

Sadako opened the door quickly and let in her bedraggled boyfriend. She felt her body throb with the lightning's power outside. Naisen was positively sopping wet. He had stopped at a convenience store on the way over and his large hand fisted his prize in his damp coat pocket as he smiled shyly through rain-soaked bangs.

Freshly dried and changed into nightclothes, Sadako smiled and let him in.

Ash frisked around Naisen's legs as Sadako took Naisen's jacket, shoes, and his shirt. She bid him sit down so she could dry his hair with a ready towel. Naisen could hear her small nervous exhales as she tenderly rubbed his scalp with the dry linen. His long hair fell damply against his shoulders, but he could feel her through all of the wet. Naisen could feel her skin crackle with the very electricity her power derived from when he pulled her against his chest, bare and warm now.

All too soon they kissed hungrily and Sadako led him back to her bedroom. Naisen followed quickly, trying not to let his eagerness show with the tender smile on his face. Sadako whispered something to Ash and shut her bedroom door, leaving him in the hall. Naisen watched her walk toward him, her nightgown a white blur in the dark. Naisen stopped too closely against him, bumped into his side, and giggled nervously as she pulled her nightgown over her head.

Suddenly neither could find anything funny about the way she stood gloriously bare-breasted before him, her high orbs tipped with rosy nipples under Naisen's intense gaze. Naisen filled his hands with them and the electricity arched between them.

As before, Sadako found she liked Naisen's large hands on her. He was learning how to touch her the way she liked and she loved him for it. She stood trembling, her core dampening through her panties, hardly daring to breathe as Naisen lowered his head below her chin and carefully explored her aching tips with lips and mouth.

His hair was damp from the rain.

Long moments passed. Sadako hugged his neck and kissed his hair sweetly. Naisen's hands roamed over her bare sides eagerly, then moved up to her arms, taking her shy hands and guiding them to the waistband of his damp jeans. He helped her unfasten the clasp and pull the zipper down, wincing when he felt the jutting edge of his arousal jam against the metal. Sadako kissed his shoulder, trembling as she carefully sorted him from disaster. She liked the arching bulge showing through the front of his boxers.

When Naisen stepped out of his jeans, she carefully touched him through the thin fabric. Only once had they come this far and that experience had been rather short lived. Naisen groaned and stilled her hand lest he come right there. Sadako blushed and entwined their fingers together, urging him to her bed.

Naisen hooked his thumbs into his boxers and urged the fabric down his hips to get them off easier. Sadako's eyes were large and shining in the near darkness of her room. She couldn't stop from trailing a finger down the length of his erection to visualize mentally what he held for her. Naisen pinched her nipple playfully and Sadako laughed, happy to be pulled hard against his thin chest. He was so slim, but corded with wiry muscle from team sports at school. Her soft budding curves pushed into his hardness, and Naisen groaned loudly.

They were built for each other. They were the missing halves to each other and Naisen felt his life ebb to partial completion as his clumsy hands tugged her panties down and aside. Sadako's thighs opened for him as they fell back onto the bed. Sadako leaned up to kiss him as Naisen's fingers fumbled behind him for his prize. His coat hit the edge of the bed and threatened to fall to the floor until he dove for it. Sadako watched him breathlessly, the both of them raggedly breathing together as the knowing of Naisen preparing his arrested lust made their throbbing flesh stiffen.

It took Naisen a few minutes to get the latex unwrapped and rolled just the way it should go and Sadako kissed his neck, liking how his shoulder-length hair tickled her nose.

"Are you ready?" Naisen growled. Sadako touched his face, hearing the severe vulnerability in the deep timbre of his voice. Her hand trailed down to his hip as they kissed shortly. Naisen leaned her down and crawled between her legs.

"Yes… Naisen…" Sadako smiled as he grunted lowly in response. The tip of his wrapped member probed against her. Sadako held her breathe as Naisen grit his teeth, following old arcane instinct to thrust his aching length into her tight sheathe, breaking her to his intrusion.

He knew it would hurt for her, but it broke Naisen's heart to hear her high surprised gasps. They were mostly of pain. Naisen's chest was rock-hard from holding himself upright. He was rigid and more than ready to continue and he though he'd lose it right then when Sadako licked his shoulder suddenly.

"Sadako, are you…" he breathed. She wriggled against him uneasily, clasping his hips.

"Please hurry," she begged. Naisen wanted to be sure she would be all right, but his young passion threatened to snuff prematurely if he didn't _move_. His hips drove into her, harder and faster and Sadako moved with him, wanting him to find his end so the pain of being his first would be over.

Sadako had no qualms about it getting better, at least to her, but when Naisen gasped highly a few minutes later, she knew she had given him a precious gift.

Naisen's eyes clenched shut as his teeth grit noticeably in an expression of agonized pain. Sadako watched him tenderly. Naisen rested on his elbows, his young body quivering.

He leaned down carefully, his world a harsh bubble of breathing, shaking and her. He traced Sadako's face with his fingertips, rigid with exhaustion. His muscles ached not in an unpleasant way, but Sadako thrummed under him in steady ecstatic harmony. Her deflowered core was so warm, it seemed to burn him through the wet rubber. Naisen groaned happily.

"I love you, Naisen," Sadako whispered. Naisen murmured in response and all too soon they were separated and lying spooned in her tangled blankets. Naisen tore the used condom from his sated member and dropped it on the floor, forgotten for now.

The thunderstorm outside was joyful, crashing down on Tokyo with a lusty vengeance. The next morning when Naisen left to go home, the water had flooded up to his ankles outside.

Seiryuu looked to Suzaku and smiled.

"Of course I will help you, my brother. We can use the power of their time together to ensure your seishi's reincarnation can find your priestess."

Suzaku sighed, his deep voice resonating in the heavens. "Thank you, Seiryuu Sekun. We will not forget your kindness nor will we abandon our friendship."

Down below in Hokkaido, a college application waited in a mailbox. It ensured a cheap monetary solution to schooling in Tokyo. When Tetsuo opened the slick manila envelope, he knew he held the answer to his wishes there in his hands.

End for now

Like it? Hate it? Send a review! Please please, it's crack for fanfiction authors.

Most sincerely yours, penpaninu yash 2/09/06


	5. After the Dreams

Once again dedicated to Miss KittyLynne. May prosperity and health always be hers.

Disclaimer: penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi in any way, nor is getting paid to write this. Does claim to see the mysterious play in life however. Boarding house at the end belongs to Takahashi Rumiko, not myself. Inhabitants unless said otherwise belong solely to her.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter five

After the dreams

Naisen and Sadako wouldn't allow themselves to be caught alone ever since that night they spent together. Naisen was certain his foster parents hadn't known he snuck out, and Sadako's parents hadn't even been in town. The guilt of the age weighed on them saying they had gone too far too fast, and they rode the crest of such guilt with ready ease. They were certain they shouldn't have done what they had.

But one day, Naisen finally had had enough, and grabbed Sadako's hand. He pulled her around the corner of their school, as his girlfriend resisted. Sadako yelled loudly and beat against his chest but Naisen ignored her. His old confidant voice of the past murmured words through his lips and Sadako's eyes widened as her heart fluttered with the woman of her other life. Her lips crashed against his and the two young students rode the emotions of each other's touch. Sadako's lips were parted from the force of his kiss when Naisen lifted his head. The edges of his longish hair tickled her red cheeks.

"Do you still think it was the wrong thing to do?" he asked in a tone far too husky for his age. Sadako held his cheek and kissed him again.

"I truly don't think so… we've been through far too much to believe that," she whispered. Naisen's cold eyes brightened and Sadako's heart was glad. They embraced tightly. Hiroshi and Toya walked around the corner and loud exclamations filled the couple's ears.

"That's it, get a room already!" Hiroshi threatened. Toya guffawed as Sadako blushed. Naisen only rubbed his neck, but refused to feel embarrassed.

"So what are we going to do about all of this?" Sadako asked, taking his hand. Naisen smiled down at her and squeezed her fingers.

"We go on as before. But if you don't want me anymore…." He began. Sadako shook her head.

"I'm not saying that exactly. I love being close to you," she promised.

Naisen chuckled then let the subject lie as their friends joined them. They walked home together. Sadako noticed that Toya, who could not hope to win the affections of her boyfriend, sidled up to Hiroshi a lot. The rumors of his sexual preferences of their last life came to mind and she met his eyes, grinning. Toya only flipped the ends of his long hair and sternly gave her a look to keep quiet. Hiroshi was an outgoing young man who didn't mind a friend's arm across his shoulders, and didn't think anything more of it. Sadako watched the earnest hopeful expression on her comrade's face. He truly wanted and needed someone to open up to and love. She wished him all the luck he could hold, and that Hiroshi could possibly open his mind to the possibility at his side.

Naisen squeezed her hand as if hearing her thoughts and nodded. His blue eyes were sad, reflecting the hope that their friend would give Toya a chance if he chose to confess his heart.

>>>>>>>

"You sure this is what you want?" Tetsuo's mother asked. The fiery-haired youth looked up from his suitcases and gave an easy grin. Graduation had come and gone in its usual pomp and ceremony and he had applied for the cheaper college in Tokyo. His grades had never been great, but they had never been bad and he was afraid for a moment he would be refused. But Tetsuo's wish had been granted and his parents received his acceptance letter. They had worked out the details between them. To save on money, Tetsuo would live in a boarding house and commute to college, and work a part-time job. His parents would send him money for expenditures if he needed them, and when tuition was due.

Tetsuo spent time working his last days in the town market, where he had worked as a bagger since he was thirteen. It was a small place to live, so many people had come to congratulate him and wish him well on his way. Tetsuo spent the rest of his time saying goodbye to school friends. His old girlfriends seemed to come out of the woodwork, wanting dates or more of him before he left.

One such night found him sprawled on the grass, watching the stars with one such ex. Miyako lay half on his chest, conversing with him. Tetsuo gently caressed her cheek then ran his fingers through her dark hair.

"So you're going away to Tokyo for school. Are you excited?" Miyako asked. Tetsuo grinned. He had always liked Miyako's straightforward attitude, and her clear loyalty. They had stayed friends even though they had broken up and Tetsuo enjoyed seeing her one last time.

"I am. I wanted to go there," Tetsuo smiled. Miyako took his hand and kissed his fingertips.

"Is there any way I can send you off better?" she asked softly. Tetsuo's eyes glazed and he shifted his legs. The night was perfect, and the opportunity was open. But his heart was resolved.

"Sorry, Miyako. This is fine right now. I'm not looking for anything more," he said. Miyako nodded, her eyes distant. But she smiled and cuddled against him. Tetsuo ran an affectionate hand through her hair.

"That's my girl," he complimented her. Miyako laughed against him.

"And here I thought I'd be the last you'd have here," she teased. Tetsuo rubbed her back and leaned his head back on one muscled arm. The stars above winked at him and his right forearm ached.

"We'll see when I come back to visit," he offered. His heart wasn't in the suggestion but his friend deserved better. Miyako watched the stars of Suzaku with him, not understanding his fascination with the sparkling constellation.

"Why did you want to go to Tokyo anyway?" Miyako asked. Tetsuo shrugged under her, his gaze fixed on the constellations above her dark head.

"The stars told me that is where I need to be…" he murmured. When Miyako chuckled, he knew something strange had come out of his mouth.

"You've been acting so funny lately, Tetsuo-kun! But that's okay, you're always going to be my weird friend," Miyako teased. Tetsuo grinned uneasily and rubbed her back. Far off across the islands, he knew another's heart ached for him to hold her as he was holding Miyako now.

>>>>>>

"Mama? Mama, what are you doing?" Hiroshi asked. Miaka shook her head and looked up at her son. He was so tall and slim, like his father.

"I don't know, I guess I was daydreaming," she smiled weakly. Hiroshi rubbed her shoulders.

"Mama, you should come inside now. I started up dinner. How was work?" he asked. Miaka took his hand and let him lead her inside. Hiroshi was taller now, he was the man of the house. Miaka felt so badly he had to be a man alone. She squeezed his hand.

"It was fine. Yui-chan talked to me about Mariko and she always asks about you each and every day," Miaka noted. Hiroshi blushed, and sat his mother down in a chair. Miaka looked up at him as he placed a cup of tea into her palms.

"Sadako-chan gave me this herb tea so…just drink it," Hiroshi said smiling. Miaka smiled and sipped slowly.

"You're going to make a lucky girl very, very happy," Miaka said. Hiroshi scuffed the toe of his slipper into the kitchen tiles.

Miaka sipped her tea as Hiroshi set the table and thought of the fiery-haired youth in her dreams. He was as slim as a reed and pleasing to look up upon. It brought a flush to her cheeks that she wanted to touch him and explore him. The smoldering looks he gave her in those dreams told her he wanted her as much.

Miaka said a prayer to Suzaku. She had a feeling her plumed bird was making her dream of this young man for a reason. He wanted to heal her broken heart and soothe the pain in her soul. She was so old though. What young college man would want an old woman when they could have any pick of the girls out there? Miaka was certain the same man in her dreams were a manifestation of secret desires for love once more. She was the once Priestess of Suzaku, and she wanted to fulfill Suzaku's will of love and life. It had been Taka's last wish.

Miaka regarded her blue-haired son with love in her gaze. Life she had aplenty, carrying Hiroshi inside her. But life she would have to follow and experience once again. She couldn't stay dead inside when Suzaku wanted her to live.

"Mama, I wish Sadako would go out with me instead of Naisen. Is that a bad thing to think?" Hiroshi griped. Miaka chuckled and laid her hand over his.

"Oh, no, it's natural to think things like that, my boy. How you deal with those friends and their relationship together is something to be looked upon. Don't let your jealousy make you do something you'll regret," Miaka advised. She sadly thought of Tasuki and a night so many years ago, and wished him well wherever he was.

In Konan, a blue-haired monk shouldered his staff and continued on his pilgrimage. He carried Tasuki's fan with him as a reminder of his deep friendship with his lost comrade. He was the only Suzaku seishi left, and it weighed deeply upon his heart.

In Japan, a red-haired young man boarded a train to travel to Tokyo and to begin his college semester. He shivered and shook his head suddenly as the lingering presence of another's fervent wish descended upon him and squeezed longingly.

"I'm coming, mystery woman. Just wait…" Tetsuo took a last look at the town he had lived all his life and stepped into his future.

In Tokyo, Miaka undressed and welcomed a dream of falling into her companion's arms. He had finally come for her.

>>>>>>>

Saito and Asakura came out of the grocery store each holding a large paper sack. Mariko skipped between them, and cheered when her father and uncle reached down and swung her by her arms over the curb. She grinned up at the tall mirror men above her and both looked down with identical smiles. Her papa had more lines pulling at the corners of his eyes, so she always knew how to tell them apart. That and when Mama went to embrace Uncle Asakura, he would yelp, whereas her papa would melt into her arms. Mariko giggled as they flipped her off her feet once more.

"Hey, look out!" a tall boy with short cropped hair called. He and his companions almost crashed into the tall twins. Mariko was let down to her feet abruptly and she looked up in confusion as her father and uncle waved the three teenagers on. She wasn't so perceptive as to miss the quick glance the two men exchanged.

"Did you feel that?" Asakura asked. Saito nodded, his expression grim.

"The others have come here some years ago it seems," he answered.

"What's it mean?" Asakura wanted to know. Saito shook his head,

"I don't know, but we should be alert…"

"What are you talking about, Papa?" Mariko asked, tugging on his pant leg. Saito flashed a brilliant smile to his daughter and reached with one arm to lift her to his shoulder.

"Nothing important, sweetie! Come on, your mama's waiting for us," Saito whistled. Asakura nodded, keeping quiet. And he turned to watch the three Suzaku seishi reincarnations scamper off down the street.

"You really should watch where you're going, Mareshi," Nana giggled. She flung her long purple hair over her shoulder and watched her friend blush with the attention.

"I was, he just came out of nowhere," Mareshi replied. He shouldered his school bag and jogged to keep up with the other boy of their group.

Hideaki was tall and slender, and his hair cascaded in dark waves past his shoulders. One would have called him effeminate if they hadn't seen his prowess with a lacrosse stick. Nana watched his slim shoulders beneath his uniform jacket and blushed. Sometimes Hideaki liked to wield that sports tool like a sword and his movements always seemed to cut the air in two.

"We can't all be as vigilant," Hideaki chuckled. Mareshi grumbled and nudged his friend in the shoulder.

"Hey, I'd like to see you walk right into someone!" he complained. Hideaki waited for Nana to reach his side and the three advanced down the busy sidewalk as one unit.

"I could, but you'd know it would be on purpose," Hideaki said. They passed by a small shrine and dodged around the young assistant. Mitsuko bowed as they passed. He felt an inclination of power surging throughout the three walking auras, and regarded the tall teenagers with a shrewd eye.

'Seiryuu above, grant me the wisdom to know be they friend or foe," the shaven assistant cast a silent prayer. The Dragon god above chuckled lowly in his mind and Mitsuko felt relieved.

"Mitsuko, come inside!" The elder priestess called. Mitsuko glanced above his brows and murmured thanks before setting his broom down and sliding the door open. He went about his duties inside when the door opened once more.

"Toya, it's good to see you," Mitsuko said politely. The tall effeminate boy clasped his slender hands and sighed.

"I need to talk to you about something, Mitsuko…" he said. The monk's assistant knelt on his knees and gestured to his friend to sit with him.

"Is it about your crush on Hiroshi-kun?" he asked cheekily. Toya blushed and tangled his fingers through the ends of his long hair.

"In way, yes…"

Mitsuko listened as his friend spilled his guts.

>>>>>>>

Tetsuo stepped off the train carrying three shoulder bags and his jacket. The rest of his belongings would arrive in a few days and for now he would find his boarding house and the surest route to college during the day. Checking a slip of paper for directions, the young man flagged a cab and made his way to his new home.

Tetsuo leaned his forehead against the window glass and watched the city's lights. Tokyo was a wonder to his small-town eyes, but he wasn't here for the activities. He was here for the college education his parents wanted him to have, and for the woman he knew truly existed here. His young impressionable mind scanned over several slim possibilities of the female variety as the cab chugged along, but he shook his head at each glance.

Tetsuo was certain it wouldn't be just any woman though. 'When I know it's her, I"ll know it. Hell, may even be struck by lightning.'

"Sir, we're here." The cabbie announced as he parked the cab before a series of boarding houses. The one he stopped in front of was old and almost ramshackle. Tetsuo gave his future home an askewed look as he tugged his bags out onto the sidewalk. The cabbie waited to be paid so Tetsuo counted out a few paper bills, including a tip. His father told him to do that, and he didn't want to do otherwise.

"Thank you…"Tetsuo watched the cab take off and looked up at the boarding house. 'Maison Ikkoku' heralded the entry way in a sign above the door. Tetsuo sighed.

"Looks a bit shabby. Might as well make the most of it," he thought. The door opened and a slim woman in her early twenties stepped out. She wore a housedress and apron with a chickadee sewn across the bosom. Her long hair was tied back into a ponytail. Her smile was dazzling and Tetsuo was thunderstruck. Could she be?…

"Hello! You must be Shinwa Tetsuo. Welcome to Maison Ikkoku!" the woman held her hand out and Tetsuo bowed over the top of it.

"Yeah that's me! It's a pleasure to meet you…" he mumbled.

"Oh, I'm Godai Kyoko. You can call me Kyoko-san," she winked. No, she wasn't creating a lightning storm inside his skin. She was beautiful, and pleasant to talk to, but she was not the one. Besides, his woman's name was Miaka! And wasn't that a wedding band on her finger?

"Thank you for meeting me, Kyoko-san…" he mumbled, shy. Kyoko smiled and turned to answer as a child called from inside.

"Kyoko, she's asking for you," A tall man peeked out the entryway grinning shyly. Kyoko's smile was warm for him and Tetsuo noticed he wore the matching wedding band Kyoko bore on her left hand.

"Then can you help Tetsuo bring in his bags? This is my husband, Yusaku," Kyoko informed, and excused herself. Yusaku shook Tetsuo's hand and helped him inside.

"You'll be having my old room I think! Number five upstairs. Number six is empty, but you have a neighbor in number four. He's a bit… odd…" Yusaku warned congenially as he and Tetsuo made their way upstairs. Tetsuo looked down to see the first apartment below. Their door peeped open and a short woman seemed to leer up at him. The door closed just as quickly.

Tetsuo looked up. "I'll be sure to watch out!" he said. Yusaku stopped before the door upstairs with the big four on the glass.

"Well, you're home now. Just remember: whatever brought you to Maison Ikkoku, it will always be your home. I learned this the long and hard way," Yusaku winked. "If you need anything, we're in the manager's office below."

"Thank you, Yusaku-san… and thank Kyoko-san for me as well." Tetsuo was nothing if not vigilant. He unpacked and opened the window to the neighborhood's sleepy atmosphere. This was a good house even if it was old. That was when the fiery youth noticed the large crack in the wall.

"They have rats the size of cats here?" Tetsuo muttered. He knelt on his hands and knees to peer inside. Dark eyes peered back at him and Tetsuo scuttled back like a crab.

"What the hell!"

The eyes belonged to a creepy looking man with short-cropped hair. His lean body was housed in a house yukata and he leered congenially at the college student.

"So we get a new Godai. How are you doing, young man? My name is Yotsuya…"

"Uhm, that's great and all, but could you crawl back the way you came?" Tetsuo muttered. He covered his right forearm when his arm burned through his jacket sleeve. Yotsuya watched him curiously and leaned on his belly, propping himself up on one arm.

"I get the feeling you'll be an interesting neighbor. I'll just help you out if you need it…"

End for now

Like it, hate it? I decided to do an impromptu crossover and throw in the Maison Ikkoku boarding house and its inhabitants. By this point, the series would be over so Akemi would be living at ChaChaMaru and not Maison, leaving room six empty. Or at least until I get a fictional character to occupy it. Yotsuya obviously stayed as well as Ichinose's family on the first floor. Haruka will be a young child and living with her family in the manager's office.

Review! Review, please please you know you want to…

Penpaninu 3/19/06


	6. Walking the Dream's Path

I know it's been awhile, but for whoever is still reading this, I won't give up my FY story. These mean a great deal to me and if you've been keeping up, I put a good deal of thought into them.

A wondrous dedication to the talented and kind Miss KittyLynne for her support and kind comments. I hope to develop further as a writer with this fanfiction practice.

Iluvmistsukake, Ledefey and others, hope you enjoy.

All members of Maison Ikkoku belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi in any of its incarnations. Does claim to see the Mysterious Play in life however.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter six

Walking the Dream's Path

"Wahoo, pour the drinks! Let's hear it for us!" a loud obnoxious voice cried out. Tetsuo opened his eyes and grimaced at the sunlight pouring into his room window. Loud raucous laughter came from downstairs and hurt his ears. Tetsuo had never been a morning person, but at least his family wasn't riotous with the noise. He knew he would have to deal with whatever neighbors could do, but Tetsuo sure found it annoying.

"Now, Mrs. Ichinose, you know you can't have that entire bottle! Share a glass already," a smooth voice called downstairs. Tetsuo rubbed his palms against his eyes and sat up. He was due in for registration that afternoon, but it wasn't even eight am! Tetsuo gave up sleep as a lost cause when footsteps pounded up the stairs to the second floor.

"Hey, college flunkout! Open up, we're having a housewarming party for you!" the feminine voice cackled before his door was unceremoniously thrown open. Tetsuo cursed and hopped out of his blankets, in all of his half-dressed glory. A round short woman with short-cropped hair leered at him, brandishing a tall bottle of sake in one chubby hand. The tall oily man in a yukata leered around her, his eyes already slitting from inebriation.

"I ain't a flunkout, what you talking about!" Tetsuo snapped. He reached around for something to get dressed into. The woman paraded inside and pulled out a pair of fans. She danced around the young slim man who desperately tried to ignore her.

"Oh ho, every man who owns this room has to be a flunkout! Take our Godai for example!" the woman exclaimed.

"Now, Mrs. Ichinose, that isn't exactly fair," Yotsuya said gamely. He rescued the bottle of sake and chugged directly from it. Mrs. Ichinose, thus called, came to a halt and made a pose with her fans.

"He has to be! He's the same age as Godai when he came here! And he's trying to get into college, ain't he?" Mrs. Ichinose thumped Tetsuo in his bare chest with the end of her fan. Tetsuo grunted and he felt the fire build inside his arms. But he released the power behind it in a simple deep exhale.

"I am IN college, and I'm going in to put my name to paper today! I been accepted, let me say," Tetsuo retorted. He found a pair of sweatpants and stumbled into them when he heard a kinder feminine voice come up the stairs.

"Mrs. Ichinose! Mrs. Ichinose, Mr. Yotsuya, are you bothering that young man already?" Godai Kyoko was coming up the stairs. Tetsuo swallowed a curse and hopped into the sweat pants, tugging the waistband up to his navel. Mrs. Ichinose cracked up at him and Yotsuya leered as Mrs. Godai made her appearance. She wore a housedress and apron with chickadees dancing across the bosom, her long hair tied back simply. Her beauty could not be ignored or talked down, as she was simply radiant in her simplicity. Tetsuo, in a moment of brief clarity, knew what the earnest older man below saw in her.

"Why, dear Mrs. Manager, we were merely welcoming young Shinwa to the household!" Yotsuya explained oily. Godai Kyoko wasn't having it, and her arms crossed under her breasts. Apparently she was used to these outbursts and Tetsuo was suddenly glad for her intelligence and experience.

"Yeah, you know we have a housewarming party for each new tenant!" Mrs. Ichinose took up a pose with her fans, prepared to dance. Yotsuya laughed and drank from the bottle. Kyoko shook her head.

"Out! Out of this room! If you're going to drink, go down to apartment number one!" Kyoko threatened. Tetsuo was relieved when the two odd tenants complied with light complaints and moderate leering. In moments he was alone with his landlady. Tetsuo stammered and looked around for a t-shirt to house the rest of his strong form. It wasn't polite to go around half-dressed in front of a woman, particularly a woman he didn't know that well.

"I must apologize for the other tenants, Shinwa-san. They're alright once you get to know them," Godai Kyoko said in an apologetic tone. Tetsuo grabbed a t-shirt and tugged it down over his head. His red hair stuck straight out in wild spikes. He rumbled a response and ran a hand through his bed hair. The effort didn't help.

"Ah, that's okay Kyoko-san! And you can call me Tetsuo," Tetsuo offered. The woman smiled and smoothed her hands over her apron.

"Well then, Tetsuo, I'll leave you to your morning, and I apologize for the rude wake-up call," Kyoko smiled, and like a summer breeze, she was out the door, closing it behind her. Tetsuo sighed and scratched at his belly. He knelt to fold up the futon and sat against it, hiking one ankle up over his knee. Well he was here in Tokyo, and he was doing it. When he got to college that is, still had to appear in person to get his books and schedule!

Tetsuo had breakfast at a local diner down the road, and took the train in to the city. He waited in line with several young men and women, some accompanied with their parents or other family members. Tetsuo tapped the toe of his scuffed sneaker against the floor, feeling rather out of place. He never felt more 'country' in his life. But he was on his own now, and he had to do it. Tetsuo followed his hand map of the campus, registered, bought books and walked around getting a feel for his schedule. His first class wasn't in two days and he could spend the time finding a part-time job to help with rent.

"Well Miaka-san, I'm here. Wish I knew where you were exactly…" Tetsuo mumbled. He swept a hand through his red bangs. Squinting up at the Tokyo skyline, he inhaled the tang of smog and sighed. He had made it where he wanted to be, now he had to make it work.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Naisen…." Sadako murmured.

"Hmm?" Naisen's deepening voice rumbled.

She and Naisen were sprawled on their backs on the hard concrete of the school roof, watching the clouds. They had snuck up there during lunch break and luckily nobody else had the same idea. The view of the sky was the best that high up and the two lay against each other, Sadako's red head pillowed on Naisen's thin chest as they made shapes out of the fluffy clouds. It was hard staying that way as the concrete dug into hipbones and legs, but they were alone and they were together.

"Do you ever think about that night?" Sadako asked. Naisen's face reddened and he coughed.

"When we… well of course. I am a man," Naisen stammered. His loins tightened uncomfortably and he shifted his thighs. Sadako raised her head and smiled down at him.

"Do you think… we could again?" she asked, shy. Naisen's heart threatened to pound its way out of his chest and he looked utterly caught by surprise. Sadako wrapped the memory of his vulnerability in her heart before he smirked.

"If you want to, and we can be alone…." His hands roamed over her and Sadako blushed, ducking her head against his chest. Naisen stroked her hair until she lifted her face and they kissed deeply. The blond boy let his girlfriend pin his arms above his head in mock play. Things started to turn serious before two voices sounded from the stair well. Naisen sat up, pulling Sadako with him and they darted around the corner from the open door.

"Drat and here I thought this was our private place," Sadako murmured. Naisen shushed her. They peered round the corner as two tall slim boys stepped out onto the roof, their school uniform jackets fluttering with the breeze. Naisen recognized the long dark gray hair that hung past the slim shoulderblades of one of the boys, and the tall short-cropped head of the other boy.

"What're Hiroshi and Toya doing up here?" Sadako whispered. Naisen felt waves of sadness roll off of Toya, and anxiety, and seeing him twist his small hands together he had an idea why.

"He's going to confess his heart to Hiroshi," Naisen guessed correctly. Sadako fidgeted, and eyed the door they peered around.

"Think we can sneak back down without them noticing?" she whispered. Naisen tensed, then went slack behind her.

"They'll hear us."

"Dammit…. Hope it goes well for him," Sadako bit her fingernails. Naisen clasped her shoulder.

"We're going to see it firsthand either way," he murmured. Sadako sighed.

Toya looked up at the taller boy, his tiny hands clasped together. His heart fluttered in his breast as he noted the fine edge of Hiroshi's jaw, of his shortly cut dark blue hair, his easy smile and twinkling eyes. Hiroshi gazed out happily at the surrounding district and breathed in the cool air.

"So what you want to talk about?" Hiroshi asked kindly. Toya's heart twisted and he twined his own fingers together.

"Well, see there's this person I like… and I don't know…. If they like me back," Toya began, rather lamely he thought. Hiroshi smiled at his friend.

"Who is it? Megumi-chan? I think she likes you," Hiroshi suggested. Toya felt his heart shudder and sway dangerously. Hiroshi was going to hate him, he knew suddenly. But he couldn't just not finish this, he'd die first.

"Uhm… Hiroshi…. I don't like her…"

"Noriko? Nozomi? Setsuko? Akane?" Hiroshi suggested. Toya shook his head at each name, his face flushing with shame behind his long bangs.

"Who is it you like?" Hiroshi decided to let his friend explain himself.

"Hmm… it's not exactly a girl," Toya mumbled. Hiroshi's mouth went dry but he smiled anyway.

"That's okay if you like guys, Toya, if you ever need any backup, you just tell me," Hiroshi winked. Toya's heart fell to his feet. Here was the part where the camaraderie would go out of his best friend's eyes.

"Uhm… Hiroshi. It's… uhm… you, I've wanted to tell you I liked you," Toya said sweetly. Hiroshi's mouth went dry again and he licked his lips.

"Huh?" was his intelligent response. Toya looked down, ashamed.

"I like you. Please, say something," Toya pleaded. Hiroshi gaped at his friend then scrubbed at the back of his neck, trying to smile. Toya felt lower than dirt for his effort.

"Oh! Hey, I didn't catch on to that… uh… I don't know what to say, Toya," Hiroshi confessed. His mind worked fast through this unexpected maneuver. What would his mother say? How would she help him? He had to do something! He wasn't comfortable with this new arrangement, but his mother would have SAID something at least!

"You can say anything," Toya mumbled, his bangs shielding his eyes. "Just…. Anything! Do you like me?

There, there was safe territory. His mother would have answered and quickly!

"Of course I like you! We've been friends for years," Hiroshi protested. Toya clasped his hands together until the knuckles turned white.

"But… do you want to be with me?" Toya whispered. 'Please, please…. Let him hear my heart….'

Hiroshi clenched his fists and looked out over the district. What would his mama do? Had she ever been asked for love when she hasn't thought of them that way? Suddenly he knew his mama had, even though she had been so very much in love with his father. How had she dealt with it, how had she kept a friend?

"I… I don't know. I never really thought about it," Hiroshi confessed quietly. Toya gasped lightly and bit his lip, looking away as tears filled his eyes.

"Toya?" Hiroshi asked, reaching for his shoulder. Toya dodged him and hid his face behind his slender hand.

"It's okay… I shouldn't have told you…" he whispered. Hiroshi smiled weakly.

"It's not your fault! Come on, Toya, cheer up…."

"Please…. Can you just leave me alone for awhile?" Toya pleaded. He heard Hiroshi walk away to the roof steps and he knelt down holding his face in his hands. He could feel his heart breaking as his friend's footsteps receded from his hearing. Sadako looked up at Naisen as their friend quaked and cried seemingly alone on the school roof.

Naisen nodded and they approached the kneeling form of their friend. Toya looked up, alarmed, but not surprised when he felt their link come close to him. Sadako dried Toya's tears and Naisen patted his shoulder. They sat with Toya until he asked to be alone.

Naisen hugged Sadako close as they walked downstairs. "Don't worry, Hiroshi may think about it," he suggested. Toya nodded. For now his world was bleak.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

That night, Tetsuya took care of Miaka at Yui's behest. He took her out to dinner alone, as Hiroshi was not in the sorts to go out after school. Tetsuya resolved to talk to his friend's son later if he needed, now that his father figure had passed on, and took Miaka out. They had a simple dinner and talked together congenially. Tetsuya was always amazed at the amount of optimism his auburn-haired friend always had. Even with the passing of her husband, she tried not to let the aftermath drag her down to a gloomy despair. If he hadn't been so in love with Yui, Tetsuya could have seen himself easily falling for the once Suzaku no Miko.

"How are you doing anyhow? You know you can always talk to me," Tetsuya smiled. Miaka thought it kind of him to remove his shades when they sat down. Tetsuya had rather expressive eyes that he always hid from everyone. Miaka sipped her coffee and blushed politely.

"I'm doing as well as I can. I would worry more about Hiroshi. He tries so hard if I'm down, and he's trying to be the man of the house," Miaka confessed. Tetsuya laid his hand lightly over hers and squeezed.

"He wants to see you happy, we all do, Miaka-chan," Tetsuya smiled. Miaka's eyes misted and she lifted her cloth napkin to her face.

"Oh, Tetsuya… it's just so strange…." She said. Tetsuya started, seeing her tears cascade down her cheeks.

"Miaka-chan! What is it?" Decorum be damned, he was ready to stand, go around the table and embrace her until she was done crying. As Tetsuya made to rise to his feet, Miaka's bright smile shone through as bright as the sun. It was her old smile and it put the businessman at ease when he was sure it was not a substitute for recovery.

"Tetsuya… have you ever felt like the story's not done with us yet?" she asked. Tetsuya raised an eyebrow.

"But the story is complete. It made its backup program to save its own lands when young Mayo-san was taken in, and the priestesses are married. What do you mean?" Tetsuya was perplexed. Miaka this time laid her hand over his, her smile radiant.

"I have a feeling the gods are sending their reincarnations to our land to ensure we are all together again. Its far too soon for Taka to be here…." Tetsuya started, ready to lend her comfort but she went on. "But the others I'm sure are here, Suzaku would want them to be happy…"

"And you? What about his beloved Suzaku no Miko?" Tetsuya asked. Miaka took his hand between hers and grinned a shy smile.

"I believe he's sending someone to see me through these dark times. He can help me love again… I'm sure of it," Miaka blushed. Tetsuya gaped at her, then smiled impishly.

"How? How will you tell who it is?" he asked. Miaka shook her head.

"I've dreamt of his name, and seen his red hair. And I'm sure I'll know him when I see him here," Miaka said with conviction. Her husband's sad smile faded to the recesses of her mind, giving her his silent blessing. Miaka was sure of it.

After Tetsuya had dropped her off home, Miaka checked on her son, and prayed a small prayer to her husband's altar. Her heart wasn't into it, feeling Suzaku wanted her to focus on the happier future. As she undressed, a still trim mother and widow, Miaka could feel the young man's presence spark somewhere in the major city. She paused before her window half dressed to gaze out at the neighborhood. Where was this young man? He said he was coming to her, he should be here soon… shouldn't he?

Miaka smiled and kissed her fingertips to the glass and climbed into the wide bed she had shared with Taka. After his death she had slept either in the living room, or boxed in the large bed with several pillows to take up the place her husband once took.

Tonight she felt at ease and fell into several dreams stark bright in their clarity of a grand friendship and tryst in the past. Every smile, every chivalrous act Tasuki had ever done for her resounded through her dream-memory. Even his uncouth manner didn't matter, for his impetuous attitude only assured her he was not rude to her, but would protect her from any ills of the world. Even the memory of the night at the inn wasn't terrible. She had let herself go enough to take Tasuki's advances with open arms and a ready heart. They had melded together in passion, and in the midst of their undressing the door had opened. Miaka's mind remembered that from the memory, Taka had burst in to save her. But she hadn't needed saving this time. This time, Taka looked sad, but happy for her, and he had given his blessing. The door closed and Miaka was swept back into Tasuki's strong arms, his muscular form pressing hard against her soft curves. And she welcomed him, her high gasps echoing off the ethereal walls of dream-time…

Miaka awoke, naked and aching beneath a hot desert sky. Her bare skin didn't trouble her as she sat and surveyed the sun-bleached sands. Her skin was as heated by those sands as by a fire seishi's large hands….

"Hehehe!" A serpentine dragon with plumed feathers rose before her. On it's back rode a red-haired youth wearing modern clothing. He saluted Miaka below with an impetuous gesture and Miaka laughed aloud. The memory of Tasuki melded to this young man, everything she knew about him was in this similar yet different man.

"Tetsuo! You've finally found me," she called. Tetsuo's eyes roamed over her curves with appreciation and she blushed.

"Indeed I have! Tetsuo always gets his man. Er, woman," Tetsuo called with flair and hopped down off the dragon's back. He knelt in the sand and took her hands in his.

"You have me, all of me. I've waited for you…" Miaka said. Tetsuo rose and took her in his wiry strong arms. The desert sands dusted their bodies together.

When Miaka awoke, she was flushed and bothered. While she laughingly berated herself for having erotic dreams about the young man, she was eager to start her day and see where it took her. The fiery youth was here. She knew this as sure as she had been Suzaku's consort.

He had sent her love again.

End for now

Like it? Hate it? Send a review!

Most sincerely yours, penpaninu 4/19/06


	7. Day Dreams and Reckonings

Once again dedicated to Miss KittyLynne. She feeds my Fushigi Yuugi fix, and gets me excited about my deep love for this anime.

Even if she doesn't read this, also dedicated in part to InuSkye. My inu ai, you energize this one to work on myself and to extend the reaches of my mind. Aishiteru

Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi nor is making any money off of this.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter seven

Day Dreams and Reckonings

"Table nine's waiting on their drinks! Move it, Shinwa!"

"On my way, sir!" Tetsuo called. He grit his teeth and balanced the tray. His eyes riveted to the ice clinking inside the glasses, focusing on them so not one would spill. He had doused a patron on his first night, and he didn't intend to repeat his evening of butt-kissing and scrubbing the bathroom floor.

"It's about time, kid. Hand over the beer," A fat businessman stated as Tetsuo stopped at his table. His suited comrades each reached for a glass as Tetsuo set them down. The red-haired youth clasped his tray in front of his waist and waited.

"You can go now, we'll call you when we want some more," the businessman demanded. Tetsuo bowed and sprinted off. He leaned against the bar, his lean legs crossed at the ankle.

Hopping at the whims of better-off men wasn't something he enjoyed, but Tetsuo knew one must pay their dues as they got started in the real world. That included answering any whim his boss had to satisfy his job needs, and to study hard for his exams and write his papers when he wasn't exhausted. Big city life was a shock compared to his country home but Tetsuo knew one morning he would have the pulse of the moving city in his veins and he would stop counting the seconds to safely enter and leave the subway doors. He would stop staring around at the hustle and bustle of everyday life out here, and he would fall into a routine that would enable his mind to other opportunities.

Opportunities such as finding his Miaka-san. Tetsuo dreamt of her on a regular basis that was hinting on borderline obsessive. His dreams grew more and more vivid and he often woke in a cold sweat, his passion tenting his shorts. His next-door neighbor Yotsuya seemed to find ways to rib him for his midnight adventures into the erotic and Tetsuo resolved to save money to get some concrete to patch up the hole between their rooms. The space big enough for a slim man to slide through had to be walled off for his privacy's sake.

"Waiter, waters over here!" Tetsuo's table six called. Tetsuo bowed at the waist and ran off. He bumped into Megumi who smiled up at him. Tetsuo noticed her red lips always curved up into a smile for him but he always brushed it off. Megumi and all the other women at his college were too young, too skinny for his taste. He wanted mature curves, a ripe woman in her prime who wanted him and his heart.

"Sorry about that, Tetsuo-kun!" Megumi cooed. Tetsuo weakly smiled and danced around her, collecting glasses of water for his tray.

"Think nothing of it!" he answered in return and all but ran to his designated table. No, he didn't want any more games. He wanted the relationship that would sustain him all of his days. 'Though it's hard chasing a dream woman…'

"Bout time, kid! We're ready for our real drinks now," one of the customers at table six announced as Tetsuo carefully set four glasses of water down onto the table. Only one glass sloshed, spilling a bare minimum of water onto the table's slick top. Tetsuo bit his lip and hoped they hadn't noticed.

"We'll take a couple of sake's, one Manhatten and a vodka martina with a pernod float," the businessman ordered. His three companions, younger women that had to have been his employees, smiled expectantly at him. Tetsuo felt his chest constrict and he stood straight.

"Of course, sir, right away," Tetsuo said smoothly, jotting down the characters and dashing off with his tray.

"Good bustle, but hope he doesn't spill the drinks when he gets back," Tetsuo heard the businessman exclaim to his party members behind him. Tetsuo's slim shoulders hunched and he ran off all the faster, dodging his colleagues and boss expertly. It was his first week, but he had always been a fast learner to a job's requirements. He wouldn't spill again.

Tetsuo relayed his order at the bar and he waited for his drinks to come up. He tapped one scuffed leather shoe into the tiled floor as he waited, and tried to look busy. It was a busy night, and he just wanted to make money. His right forearm burned and Tetsuo bit his lip, covering the sleeve of his dress shirt with his left hand in hopes of turning attention away from the fiery brand glowing on his skin. Tetsuo had always been something of a realist, but even he couldn't scoff off the brand that showed up on him often as a dream or a fanciful whim. It had been happening on a regular basis and Tetsuo knew his showing up in Tokyo amplified his possibilities.

How little the reincarnated young man knew he would be so right.

Across the street, Boshin Saito and BoshinYui were pulling a reluctant Miaka with them toward the bar we witnessed Tetsuo's job at. Miaka whined and dug her slim heels into the concrete until Saito and Yui were all set to lift her up by the elbows and take her inside bodily.

"Come on, Miaka, you know you want to have a little fun!" Yui insisted.

"But what if Hiroshi needs me? What if he left the oven on?" Miaka gave lamely. Saito laughed and lifted her up in one strong arm. Yui strode quickly at his side.

"Hiroshi-kun's fine and you know it! Come on, one drink out with your dear friends isn't going to damage you!" Saito insisted. Miaka flailed in his grasp then gave it up for a lost cause.

"I just can't! Widowed mothers don't just go out, what would people think of me?" Miaka gave one last chance.

Yui tapped her best friend lightly on the head as she pushed open the bar's doors for her husband. Saito strode on in, Miaka under one arm.

"They would think you need a little happiness! Just one drink with us, and no complaining!" Yui commanded. Miaka went limp as Saito set her on her feet strongly.

"What about Mariko?" Miaka gave one last ditch effort. Yui crossed her arms under her round breasts and smiled.

"She's in the best care with Naisen-kun, Miaka. Now no more worrying!" Yui threatened. Saito sat down at a table and he smiled when his wife joined him. Miaka stood fidgeting and then sat down across from them.

"Besides, it's not like we're going to be out partying all night. We have responsibilities now," Saito smiled kindly. Miaka bowed her head with a shy smile. The reincarnation of Suboshi had grown into a kind and loving man that had done her friend a world of good. Yui could have been happy, and very much so at that, with Tetsuya, but Saito had shared a love with her from another life. That could not be easily forgotten. Miaka knew this all too well.

"We do at that. Hey, what do you want to drink? I'm dying for a gin and tonic," Yui exclaimed. Miaka laughed and looked through a list of drinks as Saito decided.

"Hello I'm Megumi and I'll be your waitress. Would you like to try any of our monthly special drinks?" the slim college girl stepped up to their table and asked. Saito bantered easily with her, earning a slight cuff from Yui on the shoulder.

Saito only grinned and leaned to kiss her cheek. Yui rubbed her hand over his strong bicep and smiled contently.

Miaka finally decided on a rum and coke, something simple to have while she was out. Megumi bowed at their requests and scampered off.

"What, don't give me that look, Yui! There are male waiters here too," Saito observed. The young men wore tight black trousers and white dress shirts and bow ties, making him feel slightly subconscious. Being in his early thirties with a young daughter and older wife sometimes made him feel older or younger than his time depending on what angle that could be felt subconscious about.

"I'm not looking at them, I'm looking at you," Yui said honestly. Saito smiled and took her hand. Miaka looked around sadly, her large eyes woefully exclaiming her loneliness.

"What is it, Miaka-chan?" Saito asked gently. Miaka rubbed her bare arm and wished for Taka's stolid presence to be at her side once more. She shivered.

"Just being out in a public place where everyone is having a good time only makes me know how lonely I am and how I may not know happiness again," Miaka said softly. Yui and Saito exchanged glances. Then they leaned forward as one unit.

"You will fine somebody, Miaka! It would be unlikely that you don't," Yui exclaimed. Saito laid his large hand over Miaka's trembling one and squeezed. Miaka felt him infuse warmth through his will between them. She felt full from his gesture.

"There is someone else out there for you, we know it. Come on, a sexy woman who has accomplished so much and loves so readily? You're a catch and you know it," Saito smiled. Miaka knew she liked how his eyes crinkled at the edges when he smiled so and knew Yui was very happy always.

"Be careful, or I'll get jealous," Yui teased. She sipped her drink and smiled. Miaka cheered and looked around happily at the bustling bar.

"You're both right, and I can't wallow in self-doubt. I have to move one step forward at a time," Miaka exclaimed happily.

A tall red-haired young man moved with a tray behind her chair and she stiffened at the presence subconsciously. Tetsuo walked with his back ramrod straight, but he didn't see her. Miaka leaned forward and chatted with her friends. Tetsuo walked on to his table and carefully set down drinks with a smooth whisper of subservience.

Both felt the charge and looked around. Fate was leaning in their direction but for the time being they missed the immediate call. As Miaka left with her best friend and her husband, she brushed against a tall waiter. She glanced up and noticed red hair and intense eyes as they passed by each other again. And both felt the electricity flash like fire between them.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Saito asked. Yui walked with her arm around his slim waist.

Miaka looked back towards the bar and then to her friends. Her gut feeling told her to run back inside and talk to the young man. But she swallowed and went along with Yui and Saito to the subway station.

"Can we come back another time soon?" she asked quietly.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"You have to calm down, Toya, it's all going to be okay," Naisen said. He had just put Mariko down and that had been an adventure in itself like it usually was lately. She had wanted numerous horsey rides and stories read out loud before she succumbed to exhaustion. Naisen was stretched on his back in Yui's living room, talking to his classmate on his cell phone.

"But I dream about him at night, and during the day," Toya complained. Naisen smirked.

"I know, Sensei had to throw a piece of chalk at you today during lessons," he wryly brought up. Toya sighed with exasperation.

"But we have these things we can do," Toya protested and Naisen knew he spoke of their celestial powers under the Dragon God of the East. "I could make him love me…" His hand slipped into his pocket to caress a smooth clamshell.

Naisen made a clucking sound over the line with disapproval.

"That's not the way, Toya, and you know it," Naisen intoned. "Just give him some space. Maybe Hiroshi will want you that way, but even if he doesn't, be there for him."

Toya sighed. "You're right, I just want him so badly it hurts."

"I know," Naisen muttered. He was missing Sadako terribly and they had just exchanged their kisses for the afternoon a few hours earlier. It shouldn't have hurt so badly to be separated for the night but there you had it.

Toya seemed to mirror his thoughts for he laughed highly through the line. "You can't complain, she loves you and you answered her. It'll be a miracle for Hiroshi to heed the call I've made with my heart."

"Lay off the theatrics, Toya, I hear you loud and clear," Naisen grimaced, rolling onto his side. He propped his head up with one hand, his long hair falling onto the floor.

"Still, you shouldn't complain. YOU have a good thing going," Toya griped. Naisen laid his head on his bicep and smiled.

"I know I do. Just take care of your thoughts and we'll tackle this," Naisen said. He and Toya wrapped up and the blond half-japanese clicked his phone shut. He closed his eyes and thought of Sadako's red hair and the very short time he had had inside of her. He had been scared out of his mind for taking that step so early in this life but unlike other young couples, the two of them had a memory of similar embrace to see the act through.

'We may have to take it a little more slow until the next time…' Naisen thought. The front door opened and he heard his past Seiryuu no Miko and celestial brother conversing lightly as they stepped out of shoes and closed and locked the door to their home.

"She seemed to have a good time."

This from Saito.

"She did open up! I think maybe she likes somebody there." Yui's statement.

"Either way, it's good for her to get out, love."

Saito and Yui were headed his way. Naisen sat up and uncrossed his legs.

"We're home!" Yui announced, all business once more. Naisen smiled and stood up.

"Did Sukunami-san have a good time out?" Naisen asked politely as he slung his school uniform jacket on and buttoned up the front. Saito looked through his wallet and handed several hundred yen to the young man. They grinned at each other, feeling the familiar flash of celestial camaraderie.

"You know, I think she did," Yui said. She unpinned her hair and Naisen watched her blond hair fall down her back. Unlike his own, she dyed hers to keep a look she enjoyed where as he was half English.

"That's good. She always looks so sad now," Naisen said carefully. Yui hugged him goodbye and Naisen stepped into his shoes at the entry way and left.

Saito watched their young seishi leave and he twirled his fingers in midair. Several of Mariko's toys were lifted and spun in a circle. Yui clucked her tongue and walked back to the bedrooms, her long blond hair swaying.

"I told you not to do that in the house where Mariko can see," she said quietly. Saito smiled and closed his fingers together. The toys fell neatly to the floor. He followed his wife to check on their daughter.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

"Ow! Why did you have to whack me like that?" Nana whined. Her long purple hair was pulled back into a bun and her long bare legs waved back and forth as they dangled off the bench. Mareshi dabbed a rag against her brow, dotting small bits of blood away from her ivory skin.

"I'm sorry," the tall boy rumbled. His shortly cropped hair stood straight up and he knelt at his classmate's side trying to assuage her pain. "I just didn't hear you come up from behind me."

"I meant to surprise Hideyuki-kun," Nana pouted. "You didn't have to hit me with your lacrosse stick." Mareshi tutted under his breath and leaned back. He surveyed his handiwork.

"I said I was sorry. Hideyuki's getting the nurse now," Mareshi explained. Nana looked around, her heart in her eyes at the mention of their pony-tailed friend. Mareshi looked around also, watching his classmate's play lacrosse or run laps in their gym period. Nobody was paying them any attention.

"It still hurts," Nana griped. Mareshi nodded seriously and held his large right hand up. The palm was hot as sin to the touch against Nana's brow.

"What are you doing to me now?" she asked. Mareshi closed his eyes and let his power come to the surface.

"Getting rid of that cut. Now hold still please," he instructed. Sparks contrasted between his hand and Nana's brow. She looked up and touched her forehead when he retracted his palm.

"I don't know how you do that, but you can't let anybody see," Nana whispered. She smiled up at her tall somber friend. Mareshi let some emotion show in a sad smile. He massaged his right palm with his left hand and sighed.

"Here comes Hideyuki now," he murmured. Their tall longhaired friend ran waving. His lacrosse stick was cradled under one arm like a blade.

"The nurse is coming! Hey, you didn't say you were going to heal her," Hideyuki complained. His deepened voice toned like a bell. Mareshi and Nana regarded their old friend and laughed.

"So have you heard about our science project?" Nana asked. Mareshi shrugged.

"Science is not my forte," he wisely observed. Hideyuki slung his ponytail rather elegantly over his slim shoulder. Nana's heart thudded in her breast.

"It's going to be a tough project, but Toshio said we could work with him. His little brother's a first year here, some kind of genius or something."

"Really? We should get him on our team too," Nana exclaimed.

"He's in a different year! He can't be on our team," Hideyuki pointed out.

"He could give us tips however if he's really smart as they say," Mareshi suggested. The three friends nodded and felt a connection reach out towards somebody they had known before. A young short boy with his hair pulled up into a high tail on top of his head read through his books in a classroom on another floor.

Suzaku Sekun looked down from above and was pleased.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Tetsuo packed up his papers and his books into his backpack and ran out of his room.

"What's your hurry, young Shinwa? Have a drink and sit down," Yotsuya leered, pouncing on the young redhead as he scampered out and dodged him and then Mrs. Ichinose out in the hallway.

"You were drinking on my door?" he growled. He shook off the oily man's grasp and hopped clear over the kneeling Mrs. Ichinose. No different than jumping a squat fire hydrant, or so his mind formed the analogy.

"You can't leave yet!" Mrs. Ichinose cracked out laughing. She grabbed Tetsuo's ankle and sprawled him half down the stairs on his face. Tetsuo grunted and his backpack flew down out of his hand. Papers and a few books fell out on the first floor.

"Let go of me! I'm going to be late for class!" Tetsuo complained. He shook his foot mightily, and fell the rest of the way to the first floor. Mrs. Ichinose's insane laughter shook the rafters on the second floor.

"Oh look at him go! A bit more decisive spunk than our dear Godai was!" she exclaimed. Yotsuya noisily drank from their shared sake bottle and agreed.

"Although one think this one has a plan for his heartache," he explained carefully. Tetsuo flushed and climbed to his knees, shoving his papers inside his pack.

"Are you hurt, Mr. Shinwa?" Godai Haruka peered down into the young man's face, her eyes woefully worried for him. Tetsuo forced a smile and ruffled the little girl's hair.

"It's Tetsuo, Haruka-chan! And don't worry, I'll be fine," he grinned. Haruka's face broke out into a wide smile.

"Haruka, it's lunch time!" Godai Kyoko called. Haruka scampered past the entryway and past apartment number one, and around the corner to reach the manager's office and her parent's residence. Tetsuo brushed off his appearance a moment too soon for Kyoko herself made her way around the corner to apologize for the tenants and to see him off.

"I'm truly sorry for their behavior, Tetsuo-kun. I've lived with them for years and know their habits and they put up with my authority either way. I truly hope you decide to stay on at Maison Ikkoku," Kyoko said sincerely, bowing at the waist. Tetsuo stammered and bowed in return.

"Think nothing of it, Kyoko-san! It's a good place to live and Haruka-chan is a great kid," he confessed.

"If you need anything, just let Yusaku-san and I know," she suggested. Tetsuo grinned and raked a hand through his unruly red bangs. She really did care about her tenants; it was just her way.

"I sure will. Well, I must be off," he said. Kyoko watched the slim youth step into his sneakers and open the boarding house's front door.

"Have a good day!" she waved. Tetsuo walked off with a spring in his step. Godai Kyoko was a good woman and Yusaku-san was a lucky man to have gotten her. He hoped his future with his dream woman would be as ideal.

He had brushed up against what he felt was Miaka-san at his job the other night. Tetsuo was certain of it. He would keep his senses alert, and he would find her. Hopefully she would come back. The woman's eyes had widened as they briefly locked gazes before she left.

Tetsuo went to classes, and changed into his uniform later at work. Megumi and he bantered back and forth as they served drinks and waited on tables and the time flew by. Tetsuo glanced up at the clock between orders. A few more hours until the bar closed. Would she come? Would that touch against electricity in the waking world come back and find him?

Just as it seemed nothing would happen and life would continue on as bored as they would, Tetsuo was called to wait on a single woman. Her long brown hair cascaded over her shoulders in loose waves, peppered with stray silver. Her body was small, more petite, but rounded in a way most men would have lingered on no doubt due to bearing one child or more. As he approached her, Tetsuo found a strong hand clamping his arm holding him back. Tetsuo looked over his shoulder and frowned at the taller and darkly more handsome colleague of his who was notorious for the notches on his belt in the workplace and with customers.

"I'm working," Tetsuo snapped. Miro smirked and adjusted his bowtie.

"Well, not right now you're not. The boss wants to see you," Miro said smoothly. Tetsuo grit his teeth. Every instinct in his being screamed at him to go to the table and talk to the woman. He felt a drawing toward her with every fiber of his existence. Instead principal won out and he spun around, leaving the woman to the wolves so he thought of Miro and his advances.

Miro walked up to the table and ran a hand through his hair.

"Can I take your order, ma'am?" he asked smoothly. Miaka looked up, her eyes wide and frightened. But she smiled at Miro's apparent charm.

"I was wondering if I could have a gin and tonic?" Miaka asked softly. Miro smiled and jotted her order down effortlessly then leaned close.

"A beautiful woman such as your self should not be out alone. Do you need someone to champion your safety home?" he asked mellifluously. Miaka flushed as he kissed the back of her hand and looked away. No, this was not the man. She was sure of it.

"I…I don't believe that will be necessary," she stammered. Tetsuo looked over his shoulder, feeling her need call to him. He turned on his heel and stalked back out to the front.

End for now

Like it? Hate it? Send a review! I have not forgotten this story and I will complete it.

Most sincerely yours, penpaninu 6/07/06


	8. The Waking World Clashes

Well it's almost been two years... I'm so terrible, I know! I've kept in contact with my friend Miss KittyLynne and her beloved Banditscribe! But I put FY on a backburner since my fiancee hasn't seen it and focused solely on notes for my book and my Inuyasha saga. There is a deep love for this series, in all of its incarnations, that for me is timeless. I loved it by myself and hold a deep respect for these girls who defy all odds and unite men and women of different backgrounds and viewpoints to one goal...to save the world! Heheh. That Watase Yu based it on ancient China and building design and clothing is fascinating... almost like an alternate past that she just happens to be writing about. And that is too awesome.

Speaking of all the series incarnates, who is keeping up with the Genbu Kaiden english translation mangas? I have to say something but Prince Bo-Hui of the Qu-Dong empire (or Kutou in the anime), has blond hair and light eyes. This story is about the Genbu no Miko, the first of the four girls to come into the world and save a country from despair by summoning her beast god. So it's a prequel of sorts when FY began with two girls, Miaka and Yui, coming in as Suzaku no Miko and Seiryuu no Miko, finishing up what was already established as a long story. By Miaka and Yui's time, the Kutou royal line was dark-haired and Nakago, while being a celestial warrior to destiny, was from a banished and ill-reputed clan with BLOND HAIR AND LIGHT EYES. What are the odds? I don't think Watase did this on accident... maybe this is a hint that at one point at the beginning, Nakago's ancestors ruled a very early Kutou!

Now THAT is too interesting! And very awesome. If Nakago DID know this, this would also hint more at his deep fathomless rage and hate towards the Kutou emperor; despite what he had done to him. I can only say I have too much respect for this anime author for making such a correlation, which hints at a deeper writing style.

Wheeee! Anyways, my life has gone for the better and the best in the past almost two years from writing this tale. I came to odds with alot of stuff, left alot of bad influences, including two sisters who are still involved with it. Blood is thicker than water and I know one day I'll hopefully see them again. But I have another sister and she's on the right path. What helped me to this path of freedom is my beloved Skye, my Yashai lover, my fiancee, someone I consider my wife already. I got a better job and am making more money. We're both working towards house and child which is how we want it. She adores my writing, which is why I worked on Inuyasha for her, but for now, I want to call to a very deep appreciation of mine, Fushigi Yugi. I love this series! And I like my friends.

So this one is for Miss Lynne, for Banditscribe, for me, and for anyone who still reads FY fanfiction. It's scary to think it's been over a decade since this was released to the US in vhs syndication. (Effing VHS TAPE for all those really young people out there!!) But Genbu Kaiden the prequel is hopefully opening new fans to this timeless tale! Before Takiko, they should know, there was Miaka and there was Yui. And those are the ones I write about in this story.

Disclaimer: I, penpaninu, does not claim to own the likeness or characters to Fushigi Yugi. They belong solely to Watase Yu and her huge imagination. The only thing I own is this reincarnation story and made up the names to the new players of the old.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter eight

The Waking World Clashes

Miaka watched in dismay as her waiter Miro let her hand drop. His grin only widened and although she was released, she felt far from free.

"Are you sure? Because I could show you a good time. And I promise, that I won't disappoint," Miro grinned. "What's your name?"

"I..." Miaka was starting to feel panicked. She looked around, half expecting to see Taka come running to her rescue. The welcome thought was a splash of cold water across her face. Taka was gone! He wasn't coming and it was very doubtful that anyone would come in on a white horse. She would have to handle this on her own, and she didn't know how when her first response was to be kind! "I don't..."

"Hey, Miro! The boss wants to talk to you!" a low voice called out. Miaka looked up, astounded as another of the male waiters came running up. He was dressed in the same black slacks and white dress shirt as Miro, but Miaka found her eyes wanted to linger over him. Miro huffed at the competition, but turned a last dazzling smile at his charge. Her table WAS in his section, after all.

"Alright then, Shinwa. Well, my lady, I shall return." And with a last sweep of his large hand, the waiter jogged back to the bar. Tetsuo released a huge exhale of air he didn't realize he was holding then turned to the woman. The older, still very attractive woman, his mind was quick to assess. Her large, expression-filled eyes stabbed right through him like electricity.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" he murmured, his eyes never leaving hers. There was a hint of sorrow, of understanding, but of something else... something very real. What was it? And suddenly, Tetsuo wanted to never leave her sight.

Miaka swallowed and stammered, then raised her water glass to her lips and sipped slowly. The young man couldn't look away from those ruby red lips, nor the stain they left on the glasses rim. This man's gaze, she could stand.

"I'm fine...I'm fine!" she found herself repeating louder, when all he could do was stare. There wasn't anything on her face, was there? "Thank you so much."

"Ahhhh," Tetsuo scrubbed the back of his neck with one hand and grinned. "It wasn't anything! I just had to warn you, that Miro is a real player around here. I didn't want him to bother you, is all."

Miaka sat up straight, watching this young man with a deep interested gaze. His words were gruff, but his tone had a very honest appeal. "I wish you were my waiter, then," she teased lightly. She laughed mentally as she thought of what Yui would have to say about this bantering of words. 'Probably that I learned how to flirt.' She laughed.

Tetsuo laughed back, but in almost the wrong direction. "But unless you're the type of woman, who LIKES to be bothered, I won't hold you!"

Miaka set her glass down and folded her delicate hands together. "I wouldn't mind being bothered by you... what's your name?"

"Tetsuo. Shinwa Tetsuo," Tetsuo gave with relish, as if declaring himself for trouble. Miaka felt more tingles throughout her being and then stillness. It was like watching a single drop of water fall and send out ripples into the world. The ripples were filling her one at a time, and she felt she should know something about this soul she happened upon in this large city. "And you, ma'am?"

"Sukunami Miaka," Miaka smiled sadly, rubbing the ring absently on her left hand. Tetsuo was too oblivious to notice the subtle gesture and nodded in agreement.

"So, Miaka-san, why come to a bar? You look like a real kinda lady, if you don't mind my saying," Tetsuo gave. His tone was light, but his chest was so constricted, he felt he couldn't breathe. Couldn't god stop piling rocks on top of his chest already? He couldn't move!

Miaka watched the red-haired youth, feeling more and more things click. She knew she wasn't dreaming, but why was he so familar? "I... well this is all Yui's fault. See, she's been my best friend since middle school and she and her husband dragged me out here literally, a few nights ago! And well I found I..."

'We have to save Yui-chan!'

Tetsuo blinked hard. Where had that childish voice come from? It had whispered inthe back of his head that hinted at the strange dreams he had been having that led him to the heart of the islands. Why was it so familar? And while Miaka went on in her own easy way, Tetsuo felt his heart throb when he realized it was a memory, a memory of a younger version of the voice he was listening to now.

And tears pricked his eyes.

"Your friend...what was her name, did you say?" Tetsuo asked hoarsely. Miaka blinked.

"Why, it's Boshin Yui. It used to be Hongo, but she married..."

Tetsuo felt himself draw far out, then slam back into himself. Boshin, boshin... suiiiiiibossshi...in? That didn't make sense. But part of that word did. It was a name, and one that sounded like he should know what it was. He would come back to that mystery later.

"Oh, I heard ya! So they got you to enjoy the night life awhile!" Tetsuo gave back. Miaka laughed lightly with real mirth and Tetsuo's eyes grew warm.

"I just felt... I just thought... I would like it here," Miaka said softly. Her large doe-like eyes stared back into his and Tetsuo didn't think it was just a shallow flirtation. And he knew suddenly that Miaka just wouldn't know HOW to be shallow. It was against her very nature.

"I'm glad ya..."

"Shinwa!" a voice called from their peripheral vision. It was the first waiter, one Miro. "Come on, already."

"Why?" Tetsuo asked suddenly, and insolently. Miaka tried not to laugh at the look on Miro's face at being refused.

"Cause the 'Boss wants to see you,' " Miro gave back scarcastically. Tetsuo shrugged and gave Miaka an apologetic look as he followed the irate young man.

"This won't take long," he promised. At the bar, they bellied up and Miro turned on Tetsuo with a glare.

"I wasn't called for, man! And you know it!" he accused. Tetsuo shrugged, too much in a good mood to argue.

"Sorry?" he offered lamely. Miro blew his dark bangs out of his eyes and scooped ice into a glass.

"Still, it won't matter. That sweet thing at my table four was looking at me, did you see?" He tossed another glass nimbly around his waist with his left hand and caught it with his right.

Tetsuo's eyes narrowed, his good mood vanishing as suddenly as it came. He scooped ice ackwardly into the glass in his right hand. The hardened water clinked as unhappily as he felt.

"Why do you have to say something like that for? She's a nice woman," Tetsuo swore. "Not like your usual floozies."

'She's too nice for the likes of you.'

Miro laughed. "Nicely aged, you mean. She's a lonely woman and lonely women want ANYTHING that pay them any mind."

Tetsuo hunched over his tray, his anger building to a nice level of red. He let Miro go on a tirade of lewd remarks until his mind went numb. Tetsuo could dimly make out the asshole's words until his last comment stabbed through his stony exterior.

"I know I could get her in bed for an hour."

Tetsuo's mind snapped to a fine point and only now did he find words to speak.

"What did you say?" he asked brusequely. Miro shrugged and leered.

"I know I could get her, is all. Hell, I wouldn't need an hour, just fifeteen minutes. I got two dates tonight already, you know?"

Miro was still laughing when Tetsuo's fist smashed across his mouth. He recoiled back and touched his jaw.

"The fuck's wrong with you!"

And then Tetsuo truly saw red.

The patrons enjoyed their drinks and company, oblivious to the shoutin until Miro crashed over the bar and onto the nearest table. His body hit the wood with a loud smack and the nearest screamed in fear at the dread interruption. Miro's legs flopped wildly, but he didn't fall off and the table held his weight.

Then Tetsuo jumped on top of him, feet first, and the table gave. The two men hit the floor and bounced in a crescendo of noise. Miaka watched, horrified, as the two men fought against each other.

Miro was gasping as Tetsuo clambered up on top of his chest with spiderlike wiry strength, and pinned him with his knees. His curses came out strangled gasps when Tetsuo punched him meanly in the throat.

'She's been tainted... tainted... no longer a virgin...' a deep voice spoke in the back of Tetsuo's mind. Or was it REMEMBERING a deep voice??

'You'll never be able to summon Suzaku now.' SUZAKU?? Tetsuo's mind jumped around as wildly as his fists. His hands flailed and began to slow when he realized what he was doing to the poor man and then other hands descended, and pulled him back by the shoulders.

Miro was a mass of bruises and lacerations on the floor surrounded by pieces of a broken table and a crowd of gawking, fearful women and men. He turned to look for Sukunami Miaka and met her knowing, surprised gaze. She looked as fearful as the rest, but not of him. Just at his act of aggression.

"SHINWA! What the hell have you done! You stupid, arrogant kid..." The boss was yelling in his face, but Tetsuo didn't register it. He turned to keep Miaka in his gaze but he was being pulled in the other direction.

Reality hit home for him as his coat and night's earnings were thrown at him and he was led to the back door. 'Oh shit, I really needed this job.'

Miaka waited until the night's event calmed down before finding her way to the bar to find someone to interrogate. Miro was down and out and wouldn't want to help her as it was. A young collegewoman was stacking glasses to put away and caught Miaka's thoughtful gaze. It would have to do.

"Excuse me? Anou, miss?" Miaka asked, feeling like a jackass to bother her while she was working. Megumi looked up and tried to smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. Apparently that night's escapades was a real downer for her.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" she asked politely. Miaka leaned against the bar carefully.

"That waiter, Shinwa Tetsuo... do you know what happened to him?" she asked lowly. Megumi wanted to brush her off, but something in the other woman's eyes told her she wasn't just rubber-necking.

"Tetsuo-san was, ah, fired... I really wish he hadn't been. That Miro's been having it come at him for awhile now. If you ask me, he deserved what he got," Megumi said lowly, with earnest. Miaka warmed to her and leaned closer.

"Do you know his address?" she asked. Megumi nodded and looked around for the employee folder under the bar. She wasn't supposed to know a copy was down there, but she wasn't one to give out her tricks so well. Miaka seemed to catch onto this for when Megumi scribbled the characters down for her, she met her gaze.

"Why are you doing this? It's not just because I asked," Miaka wanted to know.

Megumi's eyes were large and vindicated. "Miro broke my sister's heart, that's why."

Miaka accepted the folded piece of paper and smiled. "Thank you."

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Naisen and Sadako walked with Hiroshi to school. He still seemed put off for some reason and the pair wanted to know why. After some cajouling and pushing, and then bribing, Hiroshi finally admitted his concern.

"Mama went out last night again. This time without Aunt Yui and Uncle Saito," Hiroshi mumbled. Naisen and Sadako looked at each other.

"It doesn't seem like Miaka-san's style. Are you sure this wasn't just a one time thing?" Sadako asked. Hiroshi nodded rapidly. His blue bangs hung into his troubled eyes.

"Could be, but I don't like it. She should be at home with me."

"I know, Hiroshi, but all you can do is,..."

"Hi, guys!" Toya called out brightly. Hiroshi's shoulder stiffened subconsciously and Toya faltered, seeing his reaction.

Naisen watched his friend with worry in his eyes. Apparently he HAD confessed his feelings and it hadn't gone as he had wished.

"Toya-kun! What are you doing plastered to that wall for?" Sadako called, trying to lighten the mood. Toya carefully pushed forward. His hair, plaited into an elaborate braid, swung over his shoulder.

"Just waiting on you slowpokes. Is anyone ready for that test today?" Toya tried to make small talk to cover up the nervous feeling eating his stomach open. Hiroshi exhaled, blowing his bangs out of his eyes.

"I think we are. If we flunk, we'll have one chance to make it up," Hiroshi said. Toya smiled shyly, with hope, at his friend. Hiroshi looked at the concrete, but his cheeks were flushed alittle red.

Sadako held her breath and hoped desperately for her friend. But it was all up to Hiroshi if he wanted to have a relationship with him or not.

Naisen only prayed Toya wouldn't influence Hiroshi in any way. But he knew Toya wanted love for real, and not a spell.

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Yuki Keisuke was in a mental bind. He had put his small son down for a nap and bounced his baby daughter around in his arms until she fell asleep, smiling. Mayo was out shopping so when he wanted to be solving the riddle his mind spread before him, he knew he must put his children ahead first.

But oh, they were asleep, they were both asleep, and while Keisuke longed to just crawl across the floor of his study and join his tiny girl in dreams, his waking mind wouldn't let him until he had an inkling what was going on.

Keisuke regarded the safe set between his tall bookcases almost with fear. He crawled past the desk in his study towards it, quitely lest he wake his baby. Then he sat on his haunches and punched in the time code. The safe was airtight, and the contents inside were sealed as well. He only brought what was in there out for very, very rare occasions. And those were only for researching reasons with Tetsuya or Miaka or Yui.

But now, but now... he had to admit, he had the bug, he heard seen light coming from the safe, he had heard whispered male voices in the quiet moments of his married life. Mayo had experienced the book firsthand, so she wouldn't have called him crazy. But she didn't have an answer as to why the book was resonating again, or what the reason would be.

Keisuki looked behind him. His girl was sleeping deeply, her fist pressed against her rosebud lips. Keisuke reflected that alot of fun had gone into making her, then turned back to the task at hand. The safe binged the end of the time wait and he carefully pulled the metal handle back.

The Universe of the Four Gods lay wrapped in a triple-wrap of sealed plastic. It wasn't glowing, it wasn't moving, no voices were audible. All seemed suspicious because it SEEMED nothing was happening. Keisuke gulped and reached with trembling hands for the book and unwrapped it. The book had been warped and damaged during his wife's brief time inside, but now it didn't seem as bad. It wasn't as brand-new as the night Miaka showed it to him, then fell into the red light of the world. But it wasn't as bad as how Mayo had found it years ago. It looked like a beloved faded red book you would find in a second-hand book store.

Keisuke gripped the used leather binding and opened the book. The pages seemed to creak with his finger's movements.

Four elaborately painted faces looked back up at him.

Keisuke stared, bug-eyed. He hadn't flipped to any specific chapter or drawing, but the book seemed to have opened upon something happening that maybe he wasn't supposed to know about. Focusing closer, the painted lines were made to resemble the human forms of the Four Gods. The lines describing Suzaku, Seiryuu, Genbu and Byakko's faces jumped and shifted as if the scene hadn't happened already. In fact, Keisuke realized, it was probably happening this very instant.

"Suzaku no miko's brother-interpretor has seen us," the mustachioed Genbu entoned. Seiryuu regarded him with steely eyes and Suzaku gave a warm smile.

"What of it? He has been of help in the past," Suzaku said. Byakko nodded, his child-like face serious.

"He and his friends helped my beloved miko find her love who has served me to his dying breath."

"A well and stolid man. He and his have served us in the past, and maybe just maybe... they can serve us again," Seiryuu said. His heavenly eyes seemed to be filled with loneliness, Keisuke realized. As steely as Naisen's eyes had been when he was once Nakago...

"Wait," Keisuke finally formed. "Wait! What do you mean 'serve you again??'

The picture's lines jumped and shifted and the book slammed shut in Keisuke's hand.

He sat there, breathing hard, then turned and curled himself around his daughter. When Mayo came home, she found the two of them like that.

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"This had better be good," Nana said. Hideyuki rang the bell and Mareshi smiled indulgently at her.

"You know we had to take on Satoru as our other teammate, Nana. It was unavoidable," Mareshi crooned. Nana crossed her arms under her small breasts.

"I still don't like it. We don't know this person at all!" she exclaimed.

Hideyuki stood back and flipped his ponytail over his shoulder. "We'll just make the most of it, Nana-chan. Come on, now, let's go ahead now."

The door opened and the three students were welcomed by their classmate's mother. Satoru led them upstairs to his room.

"Sorry about the mess, but it's my maid's day off," he said glibely. Nana rolled her eyes to Hideyuki. His eyes warned her to be kind. The students opened their books to begin but soon they hit a standstill.

"I don't get this..." Mareshi flipped through his books, a pencil between his teeth. Nana frowned and put her head close to Hideyuki's. Their lips formed words as they read together.

"Don't look at me, I don't know," Satoru said. "We could ask Chen, he might know."

"Who's Chen?" Nana asked, haltingly since she was trying to read at the same time.

"My kid brother. He's in middle school still, but he's super smart," Satoru snapped his book shut.

"How smart?" Hideyuki assessed.

"He's taking courses for his first year of college," Satoru said. "Hey, Chen!"

A short boy with a high ponytail came running in. He clutched three textbooks to his small chest with skinny arms. "What is it now? You know that I have to study, too!"

Satoru ruffled his brother's messy ponytail and grinned at his gawking classmates. "This is Chen, and he's gonna save our project."

Chen blushed under the scrutiny and bowed his head low. "I'll help alittle bit, but I have work to do."

Nana was the first of the three to jump up. "Nana! And very pleased to meet you."

Chen accepted her hand with a bright red face, but bowed formally to the two other boys. His serious eyes took them all in. "Hey, I got the funny feeling that we met before. Have we?"

Hideyuki shrugged easily and Mareshi grinned. "I know, we get the same feeling."

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Chichiri shuffled along the heavenly corridors, holding himself upright with his staff. He had gotten older, and while still slim as a reed and nimble to boot, it was showing in his joints and speed. His hair was turning white slowly, and still stuck out at absurd angles. His hands were wrinkled and shook sometimes, but he knew he was lucky to have aged this well.

The Four Gods were holding court at Tatisukun's domain and he had been invited along as the soul surviving seishi of any of them. (Byakko's old ones had died years ago happily and Hikitsu and Tomite of Genbu's Seven had passed to Heaven when they had bestowed the Shiatspou upon Miaka). It was lonely, as the other souls had all passed on, but the NyanNyans were good company. And Taitsukun while gruff, was better company than the Four Gods.

They were scary when together, Chichiri had to admit. He didn't know what was going on in that cavernous conference room, but he knew it definately wasn't any of his business. He carried Tasuki's staff strapped to his side, and a few necklaces and bracelets that once belonged to his Majesty and to Nuriko when they lived at the capitol. It belied his monk's garb, but they were beloved items of his departed friends and they had been given to Chichiri from her highness, the Dowager Empress Houki.

It was lonely at this juncture in his life. When he was a much younger man, (but still older than the other Suzaku seishi) he knew that he would find friends and fulfill their task in life. But that task had been achieved once, and then even twice and three times. He had guided and protected Miaka-chan and he had watched his dear friends die while he lived on and on. He felt justified in wondering if his lot on this world was done and he would be able to move on.

But the memories of his beloved friends kept him from joining the unknown path of reincarnation. How would he find them again, would he know them when he saw them? And that fear was a good enough reason to live on , and on and on for many more years.

Besides, Suzaku Sekun had asked him to stay and keep serving, so he had no choice in the matter if he wanted it that way. Chichiri always knew he could visit Houki and check in on Hotohori's son if he needed company. He heard a rustling to his right and turned, indulgently smiling.

Surely it was a Nyannyan ready to play a prank. But he was far wrong. Ethereal light wafted out and pulled on the edges of his cloak and Chichiri's eyes widened in pure shock.

"Taka-kun!" he said shrilly. So surprised was he, that his smiling mask fell off completely, exposing his good eye, wide and shocked. The spirit of Sukunami Taka shuffled forward, smiling shyly.

"I don't know much about this place or remember much of it," he gave as best he could. "But I know you, and knew I could come to you."

"What, what... what is it, Taka-san? You've passed on already?" Chichiri asked sadly. His sorrow-filled eye took in the faint edges of the Tokyo man that he knew. He was an outline, a ghost, ready to move on if he could.

"Yes. I got sick and... I felt, near the end, that it was Suzaku's will. I don't know if he wants me to move onto my next incarnation, or wait, but he is taking care of my destiny."

"What did you come for? To ask me to take care of Miaka-san?" he asked. There was so much he could do when the story was finished and the link through the book all but gone. The copy in Miaka's world was being held by her brother, which was good for them, but there wasn't much of a link through, if one, any more.

"Yes. Suzaku has sent our friends through to the modern world to see her through and she will be fine, though I want to be with her the rest of all days. Please lend her your prayers, lend her your strength to raise our son."

"So you two had a son," Chichiri's eye twinkled. "I'm so happy for you. I'll do the best I can, though you know it is hard."

"I know..." Taka's spirit turned and smiled as a very old cat limped along behind the hallway and toward Chichiri's ankles. Chichiri clucked with affection and bent slowly down to collect her up with one hand.

"Is that Tama's incarnation?" Taka asked. Chichiri nodded and scratched the cat beneath her chin. Tama purred appreciatively.

"She is. And luckily she had kittens before she got as old as I am," Chichiri smiled. One large cat stalked the hallway behind the pair, well ahead of his siblings. Taka laughed.

"So her soul will go on. Mitsukake would be pleased."

"When you love an animal so much, you see their soul shining naked in their eyes. An animal cannot lie like humans can," Chichiri murmured thoughtfully. "And when you love an animal so much, and they love you in return, they'll be bound to find you again."

"I didn't think of it that way," Taka confessed. "I mean, I love pets, but we never got around to getting Hiroshi one."

"I will lend my strength to Hiroshi-kun and Miaka-san. You can count on me," Chichiri smiled.

Taka's spirit turned and looked down the cavernous hallway. "I have to go..."

"I understand. Please, look for the others and look for me... in your next life," Chichiri asked. Taka's smile was wide.

"I will. And don't worry when you pass on. It's not that bad."

Chichiri smiled in relief.

End for now

If you're a fan of the show and the manga, (meaning what has happened before to Miaka and Yui and references to what's going on now in Genbu Kaiden) then you'll get several references to scenes in my chapter. I hope you enjoy and please always REVIEW it helps! I have more planned. Sorry the only scene with Naisen is so short. I had lots to go over. And sorry that the scene with Chen was so clipped, but I hope you know who this is. Chiriko's reincarnation!

Like it? Love it? Send a review! Even if its only two words, it takes one second and really helps the writing process!

3/09/08


	9. Fragments of Memory

Alright an update in under six months! How about that! I'm improving here... (I don't own FY, full disclaimer above chapter title)

Dedicated to my fiancee who I already call Wife. Sweet love, whenever I'm inspired, I think of you. We can only be so lucky to find love in our lives, like the full embraces Watase draws with devotion and wistful longing.. Love you...

Dedicated also to Miss KittyLynne, the best guru of Fushigi Yuugi writing I know. She always has something insightful to say, to uplift, to discuss. All hail to Banditscribe group! I know there's stuff in this chapter that will make her grin like the chesire cat I know she is. Hope the Maison Ikkoku descriptions open you more to that series.

Much thanks also to iluvmitsukake for reading this tale and my Yasha monstrosity. Here's to you! What do you think, huh?

Some author note stuff here...

The note about Toya's memory as a chinese opera actor was inspired by details of "Farewell my Concubine." That movie showed just alittle bit of some of the 'training methods' masters used on their actors when they were boys.

The scene with Keisuke and the others was written on a wave of gooseflesh. I love Watase's deeper writing, and tried to match huge proportional events with ordinary people. To me, that is what Fushigi Yuugi is all about. Finding yourself, overcoming all trials and doing extraordinary things for the world.

The second page of Genbu Kaiden volume one shows that deep, mythical connection I was trying to reach... and about my theory in that scene if you see it.

Einosuke: Thank you for agreeing to show me this priceless document.

Chinese priest 1: I only hope it will aide in your writing. (and then...)

Chinese priest 2: Are you sure it was safe to show him?...

Chinese priest 1: No matter. It has no potency anymore. He's only a writer from Japan.

I found her theory before Watase-san openly hints at it finally in the prequel. WOW... her writing is AMAZING...

I'm going off my own interpretation from what I've seen and read of the series, ova's and Eikoden. The Four Gods didn't seem to be in much control of what goes in the tv series, being summoned almost by the luck of their priestesses and other events. By the Oni Ova's, with their expulsion of Tenkou, it seemed they were gathering hold of the reins just alittle bit, by speaking out their wishes to be summoned to get rid of that demonic prescence.

By Eikoden, it's apparent the Four Gods have gained control in some way, for they sense the book's deteroriation and an approaching End. By pulling in Mayo, a nearby spectator, they wanted to save their world by using her strong feelings (even if they were negative feelings. Hey they were, and I like the kid!). So it just seemed to me, that the Four Gods have been in the background and slowly gathered control of their own power and world. So what would they have in mind? You'll find out :P

Disclaimer: the likenesses of characters in Fushigi Yugi belong solely to Watase Yu and all her publishing and animation studios. I don't own them at all! I only own the plot of this reincarnation fanfic, and the characters new names in this life. Also don't own characters and description of Maison Ikkoku... that belongs to Takahashi Rumiko!

Dreams Alter Reality chapter nine

"Fragments of Memory"

Miaka looked at the characters on the folded scrap of paper, and then up at the numbers on the front of the building. The address Megumi had written down for her had taken her down a peaceful street where rows of boarding houses lay nestled next to each other. Each had a bricked up front yard, giving privacy from the street, and an open neat entryway to each lobby.

Miaka found herself warming to the idea of Tetsuo living in such a nice area until she stopped and compared addresses. The building that matched Megumi's writing was a run-down version of what she had just passed. The walls were faded and the front walkway was lined with huge spider cracks.

Her heart sank alittle. Miaka took a deep breath and forced her sandaled feet to carry her to the front door. A small expanse of green grass framed both sides of the cracked concrete, hidden from her view from the street. A dog house stood at attention by the front stoop; it and the front door had been freshly painted. A welcome mat insisted she come on in and bright drapes were pulled back from the lobby windows.

Miaka found herself smiling. Whoever owned the place obviously tried to make it presentable despite the building's age. Passing a neat block sign reading 'Maison Ikkoku', Miaka made to step out of her sandals in the entryway when a loud 'Woof!' stopped her in her tracks.

And Miaka came face to face with the shaggiest white dog she had ever seen. "Well, I guess that dog house wasn't just for show," she muttered lamely. "Uhm... good boy?"

She held out her palms, unsure of what to do as the THING lumbered closer, sniffing loudly. She had always been more of a cat person, being a favorite of Mitsukake's Tama. And her mother had simply never let her and Keisuke get a pet as their apartment didn't allow them. The shaggy thing trying to pass for a dog seemed happy enough to sniff her hands, and then proceeded to clean them with a long pink tongue. Miaka shivered, wondering if this was a doggy ritual prior to eating its victim.

The dog showed little interest in eating her, luckily, and slowly turned a circle to lay down right at her feet on the front stoop. Miaka found herself laughing, despite herself.

"Good boy! Good boy... you know I don't taste very good, huh?" Miaka urged. She glanced at the dog house where a named was carved into the ceiling panel. "Uhm... Soichiro?"

At hearing his name, Soichiro lifted his head and barked once. Miaka laughed and patted his tired, old head.

"What an odd name for a dog... well, it suits you anyway, you odd thing!"

Soichiro answered by laying his head down and snoring. Miaka stepped out of her sandals and let the dog begin his nap in the bright morning sun. Leaning inside the lobby, she looked to the halls leading left to a flight of stairs adn right to another hallway. Doors numbered 1 and 2 were right up front before her, and she had to assume the manager's office was around the hallway's bend, tucked in the rear of the first floor.

"Hello!" Miaka called out and stepped into the hallway. A few pairs of guest slippers were considerately left out and she hesitated, then stepped into a set.

"Hmpf"! a voice coughed from apartment room 1. Miaka waited, breathless, hearing bottles clinking and somebody roll over heavily, bumping into a piece of furniture. She stood, mouth dry, imagining the Swamp Monster rising up out of the floor or something as equally disturbing from Hiroshi's horror films...

"Hey! Somebody get the door!" a gutteral female voice called behind the door. It sounded raspy from sleep and scratchy from a habit of cigarettes. Miaka was about to turn around and just leave when loud footsteps scampered loudly from the manager's apartment. She felt some of the building's world shift to a scene of normalcy as a five year old girl skidded around the corner and stopped at her feet, panting as hard as Soichiro had.

"Hello, miss lady! Welcome to our home an what is it you want?" she grinned. Miaka stooped down, smiling. The girl was cute, with light brown hair pulled back into a braid, and clad in a yellow sundress that fell to her knees.

"My name is Miaka-san. Is your mama or papa here?" Miaka asked. The girl nodded, all business.

"My mama's the manny-ger, and Papa helps sometimes. I'll go get them!" the girl exclaimed. She padded back the way she had come and Miaka had a moment to herself. She hummed and swayed back and forth on her feet.

A groan sounded from Room 1 and an older, squat woman poked her head out into the hallway.

"Hey, whuzzut? You new or somethin'?" she slurred. Miaka sweat-dropped as she realized this was the owner of the voice calling for silence earlier and she appeared to be in the stages of "the morning after." Unless she had started drinking again earlier today as well.

"I'm Sukunami Miaka, and er... I'm here for Shinwa Tetsuo," Miaka said softly. The woman frowned and waved a hand in the air.

"Hah, what'd ya wanna see THAT punk for?" she dismissed.

"Mrs. Ichinose, really! Speaking badly of your neighbors, yet," a woman scolded. Her long black hair was simply tied back and she wore a sundress to match the girl's, who was presumably her daughter.

The girl stopped in front of Miaka and beamed. "I brought her," she said proudly. "Mama, this lady wanted to see you!"

The woman smiled gently. "Thank you, Haruka-chan. You did a wonderful job."

The girl, thus named Haruka, scampered back to the manager's apartment, giggling happily. Miaka bowed to the other woman and made her introduction.

"Sukunami Miaka."

"Godai Kyoko," she said with a twinkle to her eye. Miaka liked her already. "Tell me, what is your reason for coming to Maison Ikkoku? Are you here to talk about renting a room?"

"Oh, no!" Miaka laughed lightly. "Merely to visit one of the tenants."

"Nikaido's at his job right now," Kyoko mused. Her face turned a greenish hue. "Don't tell me it's Yotsuya you came for...?"

"No..." Miaka had no idea who Yotsuya was, but he sounded like someone to steer clear of. "Shinwa Tetsuo-san."

"The new college punk," Mrs. Ichinose threw in unhelpfully.

"Mrs. Ichinose, please!" Kyoko scolded. She smiled apologetically and led Miaka up the staircase. "You'll have to forgive my tenants, they can be rather, uhm, lively."

"I know exactly what you mean," Miaka grinned, remembering filched sweets and shouting from male voices, young and old. Her beloved schiseishi...

"And he's here in number 4," Kyoko finished. The two women stopped outside the door with a big 4 etched into the glass. "Tetsuo-san! Tetsuo-san, are you awake?" Kyoko rapped politely on the door and the two waited.

Tetsuo was inside, sprawled asleep in his futon. He was dreaming of large soft eyes and soft curves. His hands were all over the woman from the bar last night, grasping and exploring. He pulled her tightly against him. Miaka molded herself across the expanse of his wide chest, her hands between them. Those delicate hands ran down his sides and almost his flat stomach. His head leaned back dramatically, the tips of his longish hair tickling the top of his shoulder blades.

"Miaka..."

"Ahh, Tetsuo!..." Miaka had wrapped her legs up around his hips, holding onto his neck with her small hands. When gravity threatened to pull her down, Tetsuo's hands held her in place, as well as a certain bulge between them. Miaka gasped appreciatively against his neck, stoking his arousal to full peak.

This was his dream woman, the Miaka he had met last night, the one who would teach him the glories of living. And he would begin to live for her now...

Tetsuo dipped a hand between them to pull at the drawstring of his pants when...

CLANG CLANG-- "Tetsuo-san! Tetsuo-san, are you awake?"

"Huh!" Tetsuo sat bolt upright, and gazed around in confusion. Bright sunshine streamed in through the uncovered window and his right foot stuck out from under the comforter. His tanktop was halftwisted across his torso, exposing sweat-drenched flesh. Lean, taut muscles flexed as he raked his hands through his touseled hair. Damn... only a dream. But what a dream!

He was still hard and he shifted his hips to alleviate the pressure of arousal mixed with having to pee. He was about to call out to Mrs. Godai when a shadow moved from the corner of his eye. Or rather, from the hole in his wall leading to Yotsuya's room...

"Get the fuck outta here, ya perv!" Tetsuo hollered. Yotsuya's head emerged from the triangular hole long enough to stick his tongue out.

"And what would you be doing that would call me a pervert for seeing?" Yotsuya asked poignantly and retreated back quickly when Tetsuo rained ammo at him. His alarm clock, textbooks, dishes, cups and other odds and ends were upended at one side of his room. The young man panted and looked at the door.

"Shit!"

Tetsuo made another swipe at his hair, making the ends stick out further. He tugged his sweatpants up higher and stumbled to the door. "I'm coming, Kyoko-san!"

He opened the door out of a dream and into a nightmare. A dream, for Miaka was there, before him once more! What was she doing here at his boarding house? A nightmare, for he looked a wreck before two lovely, mature woman.

Miaka only smiled shyly, not seeming to care about his disheveled appearance.

"Miaka-san! Ah, uh... that is..." Tetsuo looked from her to Kyoko and back again. "G-good morning..."

His manhood stretched to make a reappearance to the woman of his dreams. He coughed and tried to look casual with one wrist in front of his groin.

"Good morning, Tetsuo," Miaka said, a faint blush staining her cheeks. She hoped she wasn't too staid and formal for him... his casual bedclothes, adorably touseled hair and flexing muscles made her mouth dry as she took in the wild youth before her.

She really HAD appreciated him last night, and she didn't want to seem an old woman to him. But the way his eyes moved up and down her form when he had first seen her spoke otherwise. If she didn't know any better, she would think he had been "checking her out." She hoped she wasn't gawking, because she wasn't doing any better!

"I wanted to... see you after what happened last night." Miaka made out. She licked her lips, noting the way his tanktop clung to him in odd places across his stomach and sides. Now who was checking who out!

"Of course... wait, how'd you find out where I lived?" he teased good-naturedly. Miaka smiled.

"It wasn't too hard! Megumi helped me out when I asked," Miaka laughed. Kyoko smiled and bowed.

"I'll leave you both to it, then. It was nice to meet you, Miaka-san."

"Likewise, Kyoko-san!" Miaka waved cheerfully. Tetsuo leaned on the doorframe to his room and grinned. Miaka tried not to blush as the position made his arm muscles stand out noticeably.

"Now, what's this really about, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Anou... that is..." Miaka tried not to swoon as her gaze swept to his pectorals. Her orbs quickly swept back to his eyes.

"I heard you were fighting for what Miro was saying!" she could have kicked herself, but Tetsuo only nodded and leaned his head boyishly against his upraised arm. His long bangs swept into his eyes, hooding them sexily.

"That guy's a real piece a' work. And... pardon, Miaka-san, but I couldn't stand the things he was sayin'. No one talks to a real lady like that, and you ain't any of his floozies," he swore lowly.

Miaka's heart pounded and she clasped her hands before her. "T-thank you... I honestly didn't know how I was going to get away from him until you showed up. Thank you again..."

Tetsuo's gaze grew soft and he nodded. "Chivalry ain't all dead these days. It isn't right not to stand up for someone."

The two stood regarding each other almost casually. Miaka was lost in a maelstrom of thoughts as she surveyed the young man who was slightly older than the seishi who once protected her. Suzaku no schiseishi Tasuki had come to her world, and if he could, maybe the others could as well...

"Are you hungry?"

"Huh?" Miaka blinked the cobwebs of her thoughts away.

"Are you hungry? Or do you go around starving until lunch," Tetsuo teased. Miaka crossed her arms good-naturedly.

"It IS lunch-time!" she protested.

"Oh yeah..." Tetsuo grinned around his arm. "Can I still interest you in LUNCH, then?"

Miaka hesitated, proper and mature woman she was, standing before the wild youth. She faltered, years of marriage and propriety in her way, almost said no. She was a widow less than a year, for Suzaku's sake! What would Yui-chan, her friends, her SON, say about accepting a date from this man-child she barely knew?

In Tetsuo's eyes, she found her answer. The amber orbs glistened deeply, memories of another life pooling inside. He had that odd look of recognition, though he didn't know why. Miaka, though having no luck in finding her other Suzaku brethren whereas Yui met up with ALL of her Seiryuu ones, was plenty sure this was one of Suzaku's after all.

"Yes! Yes...lunch sounds fine," Miaka clasped her hands before her waist, blushing. Tetsuo grinned, his canine teeth pointing.

"Ya-ta!" he cheered. "Just let me get dressed, Miaka-san... and we can go!"

Miaka laughed as he turned and made to close the door. Her fingers reached out and trailed on his right wrist, stopped in their accidental touching. He was warm, charged to the touch.

"It's just Miaka," she whispered and Tetsuo's face flamed in response.

"Miaka..." he repeated, savoring her name intimately without the presence of a suffix. Miaka turned and leaned against his door, her palms pressed to her reddened cheeks.

And she remembered Tasuki, her beloved friend Tasuki, asking her forgiveness in her own home and world a few short years ago, asking to be redeemed the burden of his fathomless guilt. How he was possessed to act upon his dark desires, and those desires had been HER...

She remembered the rush of flame, the ready gift of forgiveness, Suzaku's heat surrounding them as they were lifted away... the ache in her loins and heart as he pressed on top of her, pushing his love to new heights. He had been pure joy in her hands as she purified his guilt.

And she had been happy as well...

' It's Tasuki... it has to be, ' Miaka thought. She pressed the cooler back of her hand to her cheek, hearing the faint sounds of dressing within. Then her eyes grew serious.

Would Suzaku approve? Would Taka? Oh, Taka... And as if hearing a recording play back, Miaka heard her late husband's words ringing in her memory.

' It is Suzaku's will... Live. Live and love...'

Meeting her first Suzaku incarnation couldn't be a coincidence. She didn't know if he even KNEW. But, as Miaka was fond of doing, it was best to enjoy what you had, and to be happy with it.

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Suzaku watched his aged Miko from the cavernous chamber room. Sukunami Taka stood at his elbow and the other Three Gods watched with interest as Miaka interacted with the red-haired youth.

"The sparks are apparent," Genbu Sekun observed. His dry, sonorous tone echoed throughout and into eternity.

"Yes, she is interested to match with him," Byakko added. His smooth jaw tightened in his child-like visage. "And this will make you happy, my brother?"

Seiryuu clasped his long fingers together and regarded Suzaku with hooded eyes. "Sending one of your own with your Priestess," he added.

Suzaku chuckled warmly, his sharp eyes narrowed in warmth. "My Priestess has given all she has selflessly and then some to save our world and the Universe of the Four Gods," he entoned. "It is time I send her happiness she can enjoy all her own, as well as aiding our wishes in the process."

"A high passion creates a joyful child," Genbu wondered.

"Well, she IS the Priestess of Flame and Love. I see why you sent him, brother. He is the definition all through and through. He is alive merely with an inhale of breath," Byakko said.

Sukunami Taka turned his ethereal head, his face enflamed. Suzaku smiled not unkindly.

"I have an honored place for you, my first warrior. You would not pass on in vain, alone and forgotten."

"As you say, Suzaku," Taka answered politely. He looked down into the pool showing images of his world. Teenagers that must be Seiryuu's incarnations melded around, walking to school, talking, passing notes. His own son was with them. "I just miss her so much. But... I do want her to be happy."

'Even if it is in the arms of another,' he thought. That thought that would have crushed him while alive now only sat deep and silent with his passing, burning with its existence but not with jealousy. He craned his head to watch more of what was transpiring below.

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Tetsuo emerged a few minutes later, and Miaka smiled warmly. He had put on a plain white t-shirt and blue athletic shorts with white piping down the sides. He had tamed alittle of his wild hair, popped a few mints to kill his morning breath, and stepped into simple flipflops.

Miaka tugged at the sides of her modest sundress and felt the apparent gap of years between them.

"This way," Tetsuo guided and the two made their way downstairs and out of Maison Ikkoku.

"College punk!" Mrs. Ichinose made out, as the front door opened and closed.

"Alcoholic!" Tetsuo gave back, then smiled sheepishly. "Sorry 'bout that..."

"No problem!" Miaka said cheerfully. Tetsuo had been striding quickly on his longer legs, but he halved his motions to match her more sedate pace. "Where should we go?"

"There's alittle shop around the corner," Tetsuo suggested. "Come on."

All too soon the pair were seated in a quaint little teashop, cheerfully greeted by two waitresses and the line cook.

Miaka sat primly, her thighs pressed together. Her dress fell modestly past her knees. Tetsuo's eyes grinned at her above the top of his teacup. He had been the one to suggest black chai and though green tea was a favorite, Miaka had been delighted by the explosion of imported spices against her tongue. India was where Tetsuo had said it was imported from, but the smells invoked recollections of traveling on horseback through the deserts surrounding Konan...

"So," Miaka began. Tetsuo grinned.

"So," he answered. "What does Miaka do when she's not tracking down men who get into trouble on her behalf?"

His eyes twinkled merrily, however, and Miaka knew he wasn't mad.

"Well, I'm a psychiatrist at an elementary school," Miaka tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Yui-chan works in that position as well."

"Sounds great," Tetsuo agreed. "That's real job security."

"I know," Miaka smiled sadly. "I worked there for years even when my son was attending."

Tetsuo's eyes traveled down to take in the roundness of her breasts at that mention, and then back up. "You have a son? Then... you are blessed. Must be one hell of a guy," he said easily. His mind clicked one and one... wait, that must mean...

"Anou, your... husband wouldn't mind you coming today, huh?"

He felt his possibility dwindling rapidly away when Miaka touched her wedding band, her face flushed in what he feared to be guilt.

"I wouldn't know... I'm a widow. He... passed last fall," Miaka informed him quietly. Tetsuo nodded, though his heart surged. He had a chance, after all!

"Do you... usually spend your time this way?" he asked, his heart pounding hard. Miaka looked so sad, he just wanted to make her smile!

She finally turned back to his gaze, and electricity sparked between their gazes.

"No," Miaka whispered. "Usually I keep to myself. I don't even drink that much."

' Tasuki, I've had enough... ' the childish version of her voice echoed in his mind. Tetsuo swallowed uneasily and blinked tears back from his eyes.

And he didn't know why.

"Yui-chan and Saito-san made me go with them to get me out of my grieving," Miaka went on. "And I felt that's where I needed to be."

"I did, too..." Tetsuo found himself admitting with ready ease. He and the older woman stared wide, then laughed as one.

"Funny how life turns, isn't it?" Miaka smiled sweetly. Tetsuo flashed her a fanged response before peeking inside his paper-thin wallet. He slouched over.

"Ack! You can say that again!" His eyes crossed at the two bills inside and he quickly refigured his groceries for the rest of the week. Maybe Yusaku-san would spare a ramen pack or two...

"Is something wrong, Tetsuo-san?" Miaka asked with concern. Tetsuo snapped his wallet shut, with a weak laugh.

"Of course not... in fact, lunch is on me!"

Miaka knew he was a student and couldn't afford it, but she also knew a man wouldn't listen when his pride was on the line. She was well aware of this fact...

"Got any ideas for a new job?" she pressed. When he made a face, Miaka went on hurriedly. "Because as it stands, we need a new secretary/assistant at my school! Pay is good... and it'll be experience for your resume."

Tetsuo thought it over, then flushed. He would be near her every day that she worked. It would be heaven to be that close to her, but maddening also. To have her scent and body so close without being able to do anything about it right off...

' Tetsuo...' his dream Miaka moaned. Tetsuo widened his knees.

"What would I need to do?" he asked hoarsely. Miaka was startled to see him flushed as red as his hair, before coming to the same unspoken implication.

' He would be near me all the time... I'd be near Tasuki. '

"Type, sort files, take calls, that sort of thing. And... assist me in anyway." My my, where did she learn such a provocative tone? Miaka knew Yui would be applauding her efforts if she knew.

"I always knew you were alittle horny letch," she would be saying. Well, she was about to find out anyway...

"I'd be honored to," Tetsuo said softly.

Their fingers, laid lightly on top of the table, almost touched.

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Naisen walked beside Sadako, his hand brushing hers now and then. They had been chattered about light things but his heart surged and he had to get his feelings to the surface.

"Sadako... we can't do that again, you know... that...until we're older. We need to have a childhood for a change," Naisen pleaded. Sadako sighed beside him. The thoughts had been between them for awhile now, and it was palpable relief they were finally said. She looked up at him with wide, sad eyes, but she nodded.

"Do you love me, Naisen?" she asked so sweetly that Naisen felt his heart lurch as his old soul wrapped around inside his insides and squeezed. In an instant, his deep blue eyes remembered her as a taller, voluptuous woman standing before him in a rainshower.

They had been in some garden inside the maze of the Kutou palace. Her long red hair hung sodden and damp against her back, and her hands had clutched his robe.

"Do you love me, Nakago?" she had asked before.

Naisen's lips parted as he remembered the answer he had uttered then.

"I don't love anyone." How he knew those words would hurt her, and he hadn't been disappointed. Even though he had once broken her heart, Sadako as Soi still served him with devotion and lay with him occasionally in his tent.

And now he almost did the same thing again. Naisen licked his lips, wishing for a cold drink. His throat was so parched...

"You know the answer to that," he whispered in this life. When Sadako looked down, Naisen's arm flew around her waist of its own accord and pulled her close. He bent his head to her shoulder, hanging on desperately.

Sadako sunk her fingers into Naisen's blond hair and held him close. "I know... sometimes a girl just likes to hear it. After you made me a delinquent, I'm sure I deserve that," she said haughtily. Naisen smiled ruefully and let her scamper off, the skirt of her school uniform all but waving back at him.

"Text me!" she called and Naisen raised his cell phone and waved with it. His lips had stretched out into a content smile for her and Sadako rushed off to class, all but convinced.

Naisen leaned against the side of the school and closed his eyes. Even though he'd had her and had her close to him either way, there was sometimes... SOMETIMES... the guilt, fear and pain of the past, and it would not be assuaged or soothed. And THAT was something either he was going to have to change, as Yui-san would say, or it would have to be a haunting fact he would have to live with.

Neither option seemed particularily fulfilling. Someone shuffled past him on the sidewalk and Naisen raised his crystal blye eyes to take in a similar vision of personal anguish. Hiroshi's head was so low, his chin touched his chest. He sighed, his thin shoulders expanding with the efforts, and went still. Naisen pushed off the wall and pocketed his cell.

"Yo, Hiro-chan," he called out. Hiroshi rubbed his fist against his jaw and looked out over at his tall friend. Naisen's clear blue eyes looked as haunted and distant as they sometimes were, especially back in their childhood.

"Naisen-chan... .what are you doing out here?" Hiroshi asked. His face, the face that looked so much like his father's, bounced closer in Naisen's gaze. Memories of needless rage thudded through his veins; iced over. How many times had he struck out at Tamahome for merely being there, being younger, being happy, being so... free with himself??

Naisen's fingers curled into a fist and then laid flat on his friend's shoulder. "I was just talking to Sadako about that night," he murmured. Hiroshi flashed a quirky smile.

"Ooh, do tell. Or have I heard everything?" he teased. Naisen flushed and ran his hand through his long hair. He looked away and stammered.

"Alittle bit... I mean, we're just kids," Naisen protested.

"Least you GOT something to worry 'bout. Me, I'm just stressin'."

"What for?" Naisen inquired. Was it about Sukunami-san? And why should that feel so important?

"Mama goes out alittle bit now," Hiroshi complained. "Not so much as to be bad, but an hour here or there and I've noticed."

"Aw, it's probably nothing," Naisen said. "Maybe it's with Yui-san."

"I don't know. She'd tell me if she was with her," Hiroshi complained. "I keep thinking of what if she has a boyfriend? And it makes me so mad... I mean..."

Tears filled the young teen's eyes and Naisen clasped his shoulder hard enough to bruise. "Hiroshi..."

Their brows pressed together and then Hiroshi was crying as openly as when they were children.

"Why can't my Papa still be here??" he said with real pain. Naisen's heart flooded in unsuppressed emotion and he and Hiroshi clung to each other, listening to the other sob softly.

His chest hurt, each breath was wracked with pain and Naisen had to brush the memories away as thick as deceptive cobwebs. It was Hiroshi here against him, not Tamahome or even Taka.

' Don't go peeking into the hearts of others...' Naisen gulped as his eyes shone with pain at the memory of the pain, dying alone and friendless, frozen to the end of a life without meaning. And only an enemy had been there, witness to what lurked buried in his past, and had cried for him... how that had made him so sad and ashamed! That Tamahome had SEEN... that he KNEW... that he was also human at one point.

Naisen fisted Hiroshi's jacket, his stomach turned to ice.

' Don't look at me with pity, Tamahome! '

Hiroshi watched him with confusion, his eyes wet with his tears. "Naisen, what's wrong?" his breath hitched. Naisen's fingers clawed his shoulders, then Hiroshi carefully embraced him.

Naisen stood stiffly, almost resisted as he had once so long ago. Then he sank into the welcome embrace and cried.

Hiroshi seemed to hear his unspoken pain and lent him support. After a long time, the two teens made sure to cover up any trails of crying, washing up in the restroom and cutting the first few minutes of their class. They WERE men, after all, and appearances had to be kept.

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Toya followed Hiroshi down the hallways of their school, his heart in his throat. His friend and crush hadn't said anything to him at all today, not yet, and while he wanted to see him... he just didn't have the guts to break the rift Hiroshi had made between them.

Toya's eyes lingered longingly over the long legs of his friend, muscled shins working against the fabric of his uniform slacks as he walked along. He then shook his head, feeling bad for oogling him when he wasn't sure he wanted it. His stomach hurt so much, he thought the knot inside was going to clip him in two. He had to do it, it was now or never.

But why did it have to be now?

"Uhhhm..." his voice sounded soft to his ears, barely audible to any nearby. Hiroshi wasn't going to stop and notice him calling as it was. The afternoon breeze had swallowed his tentative syllable with easy greed.

Hiroshi kept going, as unstoppable as a storm. Toya swallowed, then again, his delicate adam's apple bobbing under his uniform collar. He was going to have to take the bull by the horns if he was going to get ANYWHERE.

"HEY! HIROSHI!" Toya opened his red lips and all but screamed. Students deep in idle conversation all jerked to a stop and riveted all attention to him. Toya flushed bright red.

But his full use of what his parents called 'stage voice' had the desired effect. Sukunami Hiroshi stopped, his posture stiffened.

He hadn't turned to face Toya yet, so the slender adolescent gathered his courage and carefully picked his way closer. His classmates were still eyeing him with open curiosity and/or consternation. Toya cast his eyes to the ground.

"Sorry... sorry... 'scuse me..."

Hiroshi turned slightly to meet him, and his face was just as flushed, just as embarrassed. "You didn't have to yell for the whole world to see," Hiroshi mumbled. His deep blue eyes raised and looked his friend in the eye. Toya clasped his small hands together and nodded rapidly.

"We really need to talk," Toya insisted. His face flamed as never before. "Please... at least let me explain."

Hiroshi sighed but he nodded, lessening the knot in Toya's stomach by maybe one fraction of an inch. It would have to do in this terrifying moment.

"Okay... where should we go?" he asked. Toya was ready with an answer.

"The school roof... it should be all clear at this time of day." Toya almost slapped himself in the face at the look Hiroshi got.

The school rooftop WAS a private spot by most accounts; but it was also the kind of place you went to to confess your love or if a relationship was already established, steal a make-out session.

"Uhm, that is...maybe around behind the gym..." Toya backpedaled helplessly. Hiroshi slouched, his blue bangs covering his eyes.

"No, that's fine..."

The two boys slunk off in single file, as if they were on a raid instead of to an ackward conversation. Toya kept his eyes lowered as they climbed the stairs, unwilling to glance at Hiroshi's legs and buttocks. He was that certain he had made his friend more than angry. Hiroshi already had alot on his plate, and then he had to announce his feelings...

The last step was reached and the two youths came out into sudden brightness. The sun shone brightly overhead, the sky was a soft blue. The day was perfect, but the moment was not.

Hiroshi stopped in the middle of the tiles and about-faced towards his old friend.

"I... I know what you must be thinking," Toya stammered. He could feel Hiroshi's eyes peeling the layers of his heart aside. He ducked his head lower. "How could I like you like that, let alone tell you. You've gone through so much already, and I just went ahead and made you feel worse..."

"Toya... ahhh, it wasn't so bad. I was just surprised," Hiroshi mumbled. He scratched the back of his head.

Toya went on, as if oblivious to Hiroshi's statement. It was apparent he hadn't heard him. "And you couldn't possibly be this way, or even look at me as more than a friend..."

"But I talked to my Mama, and she said sometimes you can't help who you have feelings for..."

"And... and.. i-it's okay if you don't want to look at my face anymore, I'll stay out of your way if you want me to..."

"If you want to... hey, what?" Hiroshi asked.

"I'll leave you alone and you can forget I ever said anything..." Toya's hands were beginning to shake.. He clasped them tightly together, the tips turning white from lack of circulation.

"What are you talking about?" Hiroshi gaped. Toya lowered his head until his bangs hid his wet eyes.

"I'll... I'll stay away if you want... that's what I'm trying to say. You don't have to force yourself to hang around..."

Hiroshi's jaw dropped and he stared at the effeminate boy. He couldn't fathom the display of cowardice and he wanted to shake his friend to snap him out of it. But he remembered something Aunt Yui had said.

"Sometimes people say or do things they don't mean to because they're afraid."

Hiroshi hadn't understood her then, but he did now. Toya was scared of his reaction to his confession and was trying to offer the easy way out to cover up his bruised heart. Hiroshi's brows narrowed. That wasn't his way... he had been taught by his mama and papa to approach a problem head-on and make a proper solution. Damned if he was going to let them down!

"Toya! Stop it!" Hiroshi DID grab him this time, his large hands clasping his shoulders. "Don't say things like that if you don't mean it!"

Toya stared, stunned, into his friend's angry expression. His legs trembled and it was all he could do not to swoon at his feet. "I-I'm sorry..."

"Dammit, Toya, don't give in to fear! Mama told me that no matter what you think or do, as long as you have a good heart, is fine with the world! And if they have a problem with it, then they're not listening to themselves and they're the ones not truly living!"

Toya's wide eyes stared doefully into Hiroshi's, trying to decipher his words in his selfpitying mood. Was he trying to make him feel better? Or was he...

"I-I'm sorry," he stammered again. "I just don't know what to say after all that!"

Hiroshi heaved a sigh. "You really need to stop talking, Toya."

And then he leaned in and kissed him.

Toya's eyes widened as far as they could go, ready to pop right out of his head. His knees buckled and he really DID swoon, swaying low until Hiroshi's strong arms circled his slim waist, holding him up on his feet. His hands fisted the fabric of Hiroshi's uniform jacket.

Toya's eyes slowly closed and he moved his lips back against the taller boy's. It felt so soft... so good... while they weren't expert in the way of kissing, this still felt so nice and natural...

Hiroshi was carried away on a tide of heat, as surprised with himself as Toya was. The sensation of soft-pressed lips, wisps of Toya's long hair falling against his face, a thin but firmly toned body pressed up against him...he was ready to ascend to Heaven on wings of turpulent emotion.

He hadn't expected this but it felt better than he thought it would. And the idea was becoming more welcome...

Until swirls of sand brushed against his cheeks. Hiroshi felt, rather than saw, a caravan of tents crawling across a desolute landscape. Men and boys of varying ages wore elaborate tunics and pants stuffed into boots, identifying them as a company of actors. Their costumes, headpieces and makeup were packed away on the slowly plodding horses beside them.

As Hiroshi was puzzling this over, his mind's eye landed straight on a young boy. His long hair was pulled back into a bun, his tunic dwarfed him making him look years younger. Residues of stage make-up were still smeared expertly across his smooth face, his lips red at the corners. He walked stiffly as if hurt somewhere; and Hiroshi saw a stack of bricks in his mind. Something to do with the pain in his legs and knees, to make them more limber...

"TOYA!" Hiroshi screamed. And oddly enough, the youth raised his head. Startling pale eyes looked pleadingly into his own...

"Gah!" Hiroshi lifted his head from Toya's, his lungs drawing in air swiftly. "Toya!"

"Hiroshi..." Toya whispered, touching his fingers to his own lips. He could still taste him.

But Hiroshi was panting hard, staring at him with a mingled sense of surprise and awe.

"Hiro, are you okay?"

"Toya..." Hiroshi's figners gripped his shoulders hard. "What WAS that??"

"Muh?" Toya asked intelligently, his eyes crossing.

"That desert! Those actors... and that boy... why did I see that?"

Toya remembered all of those things, and he smiled weakly. "Eh heh...well you see, I think you looked at a memory of mine..."

"But..."

"Well, you believe in past lives?" Toya asked softly, his face down. Hiroshi shrugged.

"Mama does. But I don't know... I guess I didn't really think about it."

"From what I remember, that was where I was at along time ago. That's all..." Toya fidgeted. Hiroshi watched him, his eyes soft.

"Lease you're somewhere better, now. Come on, let's get to lunch," Hiroshi said. He grinned. "My treat today."

"Well, if you insist..." Toya flashed his usual grin and sauntered at Hiroshi's side. His heart was troubled though. How could Hiroshi have been so close as to SEE?... To see the abuse he had been through before he discovered he had the abilities of sorcery and illusion to make the pain stop...

Well, his friend WAS the son of Suzaku no Miko. Maybe that gave him some inherent powers they had no idea about.

"I think I'll have a brownie AND a piece of cake for dessert!"

"Oh, you're so spoiled..."

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"We need to talk," Keisuke said.

Miaka heard the four words over the phone, immediately stiffening in anticipation. She had just come home from her interesting lunch with Tetsuo, and for a moment Keisuke had found out and was ready to grill her! She relaxed slightly, as she realized he couldn't have found out so fast. Where would his source be? No one knew about her side trip today.

"What is it, 'nii-chan?" she asked.

Keisuke smiled, hearing a hint of her old chipper self. "It's urgent, Miaka. Make that top-secret!" he declared.

Miaka rolled her eyes. Sometimes he was too much for the dramatic.

"Okay, okay..."

"And bring Yui-chan. I'm calling Tetsuya."

Miaka looked ahead, her heart thumping hard. "You don't think..."

"I said it was serious," Keisuke gently chided.

"I'll be there," Miaka swore.

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Half an hour later, the urgent meeting began at Keisuke's home. He and Tetsuya sat side by side, comparing notes. Yui sat between her husband and Tetsuya, peeping over her ex's shoulder out of blatant curiosity. She and Tetsuya had fortunately retained a good friendship, over the years. Saito had long ago learned patience and let her be, being drawn himself into Miaka and Mayo's camraderie.

"She's so beautiful, Mayo-chan! She looks just like you," Miaka cooed to the younger woman. Her second child was in her arms, a small padded bundle. Miaka touched the tiny fist of the infant and Mayo smiled widely, touched as usual by Miaka's infectious mood. Her daughter, Sakura, grabbed onto Miaka's finger and clamped down as she slept.

"Yes, but her eyes are all Keisuke's," Mayo laughed, hugging her close. Keisuke looked up from his notes and smiled warmly. His heart tugged at the sight of the three women in his life, other than his mother who wasn't present. His sister, wife and daughter... but fear tugged just as hard at him. He turned back to Tetsuya and rifled through their notebooks and loose printouts.

"Has there been a time when all Four of the Gods were together aside from Tenkou?" he murmured to his oldest friend. Yui squeezed closer if that was possible, her blue eyes widening. She nudged Tetsuya's arm and their eyes locked in question.

"I remember when Mariko-chan was that age," Miaka commented. "Just as sleepy, too."

Sakura pressed a tiny fist against her rosebud mouth and yawned.

"I'd love to have a daughter... Hiroshi's too big to hold now."

Mayo smiled kindly at her predecessor. "It's not too late, Miaka-san. You could start dating again, surely!"

"Yeah," Saito put in. "It's never too late to shack up and have a love child." Mayo giggled as Miaka gasped; Tetsuya glanced at his former competition out of the corner of his eye, then smiled.

Yui swatted her husband good, though. "You great, big fool! It still may be too soon to settle on somebody," she scolded.

"Well... that is... I think I found someone," Miaka ventured timidly. There was a moment's silence before the table roared in response.

"WHAT??"

"Miaka, no way! You have a boyfriend this soon??"

"Does Hiroshi-kun know?"

"Quiet you, you all woke up the baby!"

"I knew she had it in her! Never too old!"

"What? Hey!" Miaka drew up, indignant at the implication. "I didn't mean it like THAT!"

' Or did I? '

"I meant one of the Suzaku Schiseishi!"

"Oooooh..." her friends and brother all deflated, some looking more disappointed than others.

"You know," Saito said seriously,"Asakura and I felt something a few weeks ago that could have been some of the Suzaku no seishi. They were teenagers from another school, because I didn't recognize the uniform."

"And you're telling us this NOW?" Yui asked in consternation. Mayo laughed with joy.

"The Suzaku no seishi reincarnated here, how wonderful!" she remembered seemless friendship and warm fellowship.

"If mine could be, why NOT Miaka's?..." Yui mused.

"Yui-chan..." Miaka gazed at her oldest friend with fondness. A twinkled sparkled in Yui's eye.

"However, it only means that THIS time, I beat you in finding my stars!"

"It was never a competition!" Miaka protested. Yui hung onto Saito's broad bicep and stuck her tongue out.

"Mama, Satsuke won't let me play!" Mariko edged into the dining room and pouted. Saito's eyes softened and he gently leaned to kiss the tears from his daughter's eye.

"Tell him no horsey rides from me if he won't," he offered. Mariko's face lit up.

"Kay! Bye, papa, bye, mama!" she announced and ran back into the children's bedroom. Keisuke watched her go with a hooded expression. His eyes lingered over his infant and his fingers traced his notes anxiously.

"I reaaaaally hate to stop all the carousing," he said dryly. "But I called you all here because of this latest development with The Book."

Everyone sobered. Whenever mention of 'The Book' came up, it was top subject, as it had all changed their lives dramatically.

Tetsuya pushed his shades up onto his nose. "You WERE rather vague about it on the phone. Did you find something of interest?"

"Something more disturbing," Keisuke confessed. He cleared his throat. Mayo watched him curiously, and just a moment's hesitation that could be pushed to fear. Whatever he chose to say next would determine...

"Out with it, 'nii-chan," Miaka urged.

"You have our attention as it is," Yui insisted. Saito suddenly clasped her shoulder hard.

"Well... we've put off our studies of the Shishin Tensho as the story was finished with Mayo entering. She in effect saved the Book's existence--"

"--with Miaka-san's help," Mayo put in. Miaka blushed.

"Obviously this book isn't just ordinary paper and ink. Even translated by Okuda-san, I've deemed from our research that this is a portal, a sutra, to an actual world. But well," Keisuke allowed a small smile throughout the stunned silence. "I don't have to preach to the choir. We all of us here know that world inside exists!"

Saito and Yuui nodded. They could hear Mariko singing from the next room...

"The Four Gods were desperate to save their world when the story's sutra had been finished when they defeated Tenkou the Pretender. Their purpose was written as finished, so in a way, they needed to go BEYOND what Okuda-san had translated."

"But I thought I stopped the Book's decay when I summoned Suzaku once more," Mayo asked, confused. "In that time, They went beyond the original 'story' on their own."

"Exactly!" Keisuke gestured with a pencil. "They moved beyond the written words and made events come to the conclusion they wanted."

"And it's obvious they wanted that world to keep on existing," Tetsuya concluded.

Miaka and Yui locked eyes.

"But, with each action we decided, and that our seishi decided, that created its own outcome. That wasn't predestined!" Miaka said.

"I could have believed in Miaka... Amiboshi didn't have to be lost... " Yui mused. Saito's eyes dropped in sorrow.

"And Tamahome's family would have been left unaffected..." Yui squeezed his hand tightly.

"Yes..." Yui whispered. She spoke louder to the group. "Any girl could have opened that book and become the Priestesses of Seiryuu or Suzaku, though."

Tetsuya took off his shades and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okuda Takiko had access to the book only because her father had finished translating it. It was mere luck that she happened to be near it when the Story began. And Ohsugi Suzuno-san..."

"She was near the Book only because Okuda-san had sent it to his university friend, her father. She was the only girl nearby at the time, and The Book took her inside because it needed the Byakko no Miko," Keisuke concluded.

"So if the Four Gods couldn't control which girl was taken into their world, nor the outcome of their nation's events, They must be wanting to take control of matters into Their own hands, finally," Saito said wisely.

"I have to admit, I wouldn't be the first choice to save the Book if they had a say," Mayo laughed good-naturedly.

"Now, that's not true..." Saito patted her shoulder.

"You did just fine, Mayo-chan," Yui smiled. Miaka played with Sakura's hands.

Keisuke smiled kindly at her then turned serious again. "You're more right than you know, Saito-san. I haven't even touched the Shishin Tensho in weeks now, because work and the babies have us so busy."

"As if half the work wasn't put on me," Mayo teased.

"But, even so, I've heard whisperings from the safe," Keisuke said. His face looked troubled. "And yesterday... when I went to look, I saw a scene where the picture swam as if moving. The lines all shifted and it looked so strange, that I could tell it had to have been happening before my eyes. All Four of the Gods were sitting together, discussing something..."

"How can that be?..." Tetsuya began but Keisuke pressed on.

"And they all LOOKED RIGHT UP AT ME. How could that be possible?" Keisuke demanded.

Everyone gasped and the still dread silence of fear pinched the group of friends hard.

"What did they say?" Miaka asked quietly. Her lips were almost white.

"They identified who I was. Even reading the story out loud, they knew who I was," Keisuke admitted sheepishly. "And they said I would 'serve them once more.' "

The group exploded, none more than Mayo.

"Why would they say that? What do they want you for??" she asked sharply. Sakura woke from the commotion and wailed. Mayo looked down to her daughter, her face twisted in fear. She rocked the baby gently.

"Nii-chan, you can't! You know what that world is like... it's very real and you can be hurt or killed, just like here!" Miaka exclaimed. Her heart turned over. Would her own brother be taken from her, just like Taka had?

Keisuke smiled sadly, his heart in his eyes. "I don't know what's going on. But you gave it everything you had and even if the Shishin Tensho has moved beyond the fabrication of a simple story, I'll do whatever has to be done. You taught me that, Miaka."

"Keisuke..." Mayo said, her voice deepened with worry. Miaka and Saito clasped her on either side.

"What could Seiryuu and the others want?" Saito wondered.

"Maybe... maybe it could be that with Them gaining control of Their own world..." Tetsuya began, lost in thought.

"What is it, Tetsuya?" Yui asked. Saito watched the two of them.

"It could be they just want to do more than exist... they want to live," Tetsuya smiled, crinkles pulling at the corners of his eyes. He saw Yui catch Saito's eyes, the two sharing a deep gaze. He saw Mayo with Keisuke's daughter in her arms.

And he saw himself many years ago, with a long-haired college student on his arm...

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As the friends pondered this and myriad other possibilities, the Four Gods looked down into Yuuki Keisuke's living room.

"He has the right of it," Byakko Sekun said melliflously.

"Such simple wisdom. Such simple emotion, but powerful... so strong they could shake the world if they chose. What is it about these humans? They have more than they seem capable of!" Seiryuu Sekun wondered.

Genbu Sekun turned, his armor clinking. "The capacity for mercy, the endless depth of love... and the will to sacrifice one's self to protect," he murmured. His ancient eyes glazed and he saw his Miko again, the ashes that had once been a girl named Okuda Takiko briefly flickering across the surface of the seeing pool.

She had raised her arms to the skies, called his full name by the Four Directions of Heaven. She had been flanked by her Seven, and she had been beautiful, her hair long and dark, her throat and slender arms ivory white and bare from her elaborate robe.

Suzaku Sekun nodded. "They are selfless... and these by far are the best of humanity I have seen. They burn with my element and readily give it to all they pass."

The Four Gods nodded to each other and looked back into Tokyo.

Mariko shivered and looked around. Upon seeing no one, she went back to playing with Satsuke.

End for now

Wow wow wow wow! This was too much fun to write. With some good tunes (winks at Banditscribe), a stack of the manga and lots of coffee, I was in penheaven, making these words flow out to you. I truly love this fic. It really took a good turn and I hope you enjoy. Please, please type a review if you can, it only takes two seconds! And it helps to know what was good, what was bad, what was okay. Like it? Love it? Click click send your opinion to me!

Most sincerely,

pen rose 8/27/08


	10. Office Space

It's October now, one of my favorite months. I love fall, but I love winter even more. Alot of people can't stand the cold, but I love it. I love the biting cold in your cheeks, the way your breath steams, and the way it widens your eyes. Got asthma from childhood again, and it helps me breathe easier. And everyone is so quick to hibernate, when I am wide awake, another good reason. I also love the spookiness of this month for Halloween. I read scary books and scary stories and am currently in a mood of Romero zombie flicks. It's good to get that scary chill!

"Pull me under" by Dream Theatre is good backdrop when I was writing this. Give some of that band a listen, it gives good mental stimulation.

Also, "Forca" by Nelly Furtado :P Great visual imagery!

All thanks to my lovely mate/fiancee and/or wife. I call her wife even if we can't get that title legally... but when you have a partner that takes care of business with you, and the household, what else do you call that? Wifey wife wife how do I love thee, let me count the ways! Just woke up from 8 uninterrupted hours of content sleep at her side so the world is all in its right.

Thanks to Miss KittyLynne, be-all guru of FY to my knowledge. She has a ready appreciation and passion that all fans are happy to share and discuss, Banditscribe is a wonderful group! I hope you enjoy this one, hon! There's some goodies that you'll appreciate. (grin)

Thanks also to the lovely iluvmitsukake! Your words always make my day, believe me. There are rarer FY fans online these days, so a kind word is appreciated! Mayo is a character that got her debute in the last OVA series, Eikoden. It's a good four episodes, and a great ending to the whole she-bang. I recommend giving it a try!

Also thanks to fushigiyuugifan, Delton Ruu, AnimeRoseAssassin.

Also a special one to Kisaki Akizuki! I appreciate the point out to the annoying '8's' breaking up the scenes; it's that fanfiction dot net's editing is weird in it's allowing for a spacer, and I find a huge gap still disconcerting. Hence the 8's ;;; I know, it's strange.

I am rewatching the end of the FY series, and am now in the ova's. My noticing Nakago's resemblance to Prince Bo-Hui tickled again when I saw the episode where Nakago finally killed the Kutou emperor. He said, with chilly vengeance, "This is for what you did to my people." And blasts his molecules away to nothing; just like Jean Grey in X-Men 3! Then he opens his eyes, and looks empty inside; like even though he did what he always wanted to, there wasn't an ounce of satisfaction. Hmm...

Disclaimer: I do not claim to own the likeness or characters of the Fushigi Yuugi series. They belong solely to Watase Yuu and her gorgeous talent! Anybody read another series of hers, "Absolute Boyfriend?" Her drawing and storytelling only get better with time.

"Dreams Alter Reality" chapter ten

"Office Space"

Miaka walked into the elementary school office area, Yui keeping easy pace. Her best friend was chattering about something Asakura had done in his last visit, some prank played on his brother, but Miaka couldn't confess to listening. Her brown eyes scanned the familiar faces of her colleagues, Eri-chan and Principal Sumiyoshi. She knew today was Tetsuo's first day, having called Sumiyoshi himself to ask how the interview had gone.

"Not so bad, he's quite rough around the edges and more than alittle nervous... but he might do."

'Yes, he might do at that,' Miaka breathed silently to herself. To say she was nervous also was like saying the sun was out. Her heart flamed in hope, but sank when looking around the front desks. She didn't see any sign of him. Had he missed out? Or was he late? Sumiyoshi wasn't one for tardiness...

"And then Saito grabbed Asakura and put him in a headlock faster than you could blink! He was soaking wet and..." Yui tucked a long lock of hair into her bun. "Are you even listening, Miaka?"

"Huh?" Miaka blinked. Yui crossed her arms, then crooked her eyebrow knowingly.

"Ohhh, so today is HIS first day. It completely slipped my mind."

"I couldn't sleep," Miaka confessed. "Oh, Yui, what if he doesn't show?"

"Well, I wouldn't worry about it too much. You DO know where he lives," Yui teased.

"I know, but..." Miaka made another scan, her heart sinking low. A man backed out of the supply closet suddenly, his arms loaded with paper and office paraphenalia. His back was to her, but Miaka knew that red hair anywhere.

And then did she breathe a sigh of relief.

"Well..." she heard Yui say. "All I can say is 'yowza.' "

Miaka agreed. She was red-hot throughout her core, watching the college student go about tidying up his new desk. He really cut a slim figure of a man in khaki slacks and button down shirt. Her eyes kept lingering over the flat tummy behind his belt. But if she kept going, she was going to be a pervert before she knew it!

"So which one was he? The emperor?" Yui whispered at her side. Miaka shook her head, smiling fondly.

"The bandit. Tasuki," she admitted. Yui giggled and elbowed her.

"I always knew you secretly had a thing for the bad boy image! Oooh sweep me up and tie me..."

"He's not a delinquent!" Miaka protested. "He just knows when to stick up for people. Although... he DID carry me off when I first met him in the book..."

'Don't try any funny business. I hate girls, but since yer Eiken's...'

"Woo-hoo! Too much! I love it when I'm right," Yui said eagerly. Tetsuo looked up at the commotion; saw the two women. He smiled and ambled their way.

"For Suzaku's sake, be quiet already!" Miaka hissed. Yui tapped her arm, grinning.

"I'll be good as long as you will be!" she gave back before Tetsuo stopped within speaking distance.

"Good morning, Miaka-san," he grinned. Miaka blushed prettily and bobbed a demure bow.

"I told you, it's just..."

"I know, but we're at a place of work. I should show you the proper title of respect," Tetsuo said. Miaka nodded, her face flushed warm.

"Of course... Tetsuo-kun. We should be respectful," she agreed. His eyes told her it would be a different matter if they were not there.

"Ahem!" Yui coughed. Miaka jumped, guilty of another eye-lock with Tetsuo's smouldering amber gaze.

"Oh! May I introduce you to my dearest friend, Boshin Yui," she offered as grandly as she could be for being tardy with it. Yui stepped up, her hand extended to shake.

"I'm the one to come to about any embarrassing stories," she offered. Tetsuo laughed and shook her hand, then bowed.

"That's good to hear. And I'll do my best here!"

"You'll do fine," Yui assured him. "Well, I'm going to get my office ready for sessions. I'll catch up with you both later!"

Miaka silently thanked her friend for the discrete way out and waved. Yui winked back. Miaka was dimly aware of Eri getting in at her own front desk, picking up the phone for the school's first call of the day.

"Good morning, and thank you for calling..."

"I must be getting ready, too," Miaka admitted. "You'll be fine?" Tetsuo nodded, scratching the back of his neck. He had tamed his hair down somewhat but several areas still stuck out, refusing the gel he had used.

"Sumiyoshi-san said I'd be shadowing Eri-kun today, to get the hang of it. I'll ace it," he vowed. Miaka clasped her hands together.

"If you have any questions or need anything... I'm just a door away," Miaka said and walked to her office with a sway in her hips that she was sure Tetsuo was gawking over.

Tetsuo watched his dream woman go with a wistful longing on his face. He was snapped out of his passion-hazed hue when Eri called him over.

"How are you, Tetsuo-kun? We'll begin on calls, since we'll get alot of them! Now, to transer a call, press this button here. Hold is, well, the hold button. And remember, always be polite," she chirped. Tetsuo sank down into his wheeled chair, trying to keep his head from spinning. He nodded and took it all in.

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Type reports. Sort files. Answer the phone. Know who and what to refer the call to. Greet children coming into the lobby. It was a long morning, and a grueling one for Tetsuo. He liked to think he did well, but he wasn't sure. Half the times, he had to run to Eri-kun for answers! The motherly woman took it in stride, and really helped him out. When a little girl started bawling at him for asking what she needed, Eri took her by the hand and gently spoke to her.

Tetsuo leaned back in his chair during a brief moment of silence, and sighed. He glanced over at the counselor's offices and wondered what Miaka was doing in there. The only time he had seen her all morning was an appointment with a fifth grade boy. Miaka had greeted the kid cheerfully, and invited him inside. Tetsuo knew a moment of envy just watching.

Sukunami Miaka... Miaka... Miaka... The woman he had dreamed of in his hometown had the very same name, the same eyes and laugh. If anyone were to meet a dream walking, this was it. Tetsuo knew it in his soul. He had felt the startling connection when he had chased Miro away from her...

That he was here to love this woman, he had no doubt. Tetsuo wasn't going to deem it a mere coincidence, when her eyes leapt when meeting his, or the way her knees trembled when she spoke to him.

It was more than the possibility of a romance, of a physical relationship. It seemed important he be with her. The rest was all bonus, as far as he was concerned.

'I can't stand this,' Tetsuo thought, his face flushed. His dreams had been intense all week to the point of embarrassment. When he saw Miaka this morning, the need to take her in his arms was so strong, he wasn't sure how he was able to control himself. He ached to be inside her and it wasn't just implicated lust. He could trust her, and Miaka should know she could trust him.

The fire burned between them, as bright as the kanji symbol that burned his right wrist occasionally. Tetsuo was sure she was interested, and he hoped to God it wasn't just male assumption on his part. He knew how girls were; just because they smiled didn't mean they wanted you. You had to dig carefully, you had to KNOW before touching a woman, that she wanted your hands there. Tetsuo's past experiences had all been with accurately read signs from classmates, however.

This was the first time he had been with someone several years older. He didn't intend to mess things up. He would take care of things. Tetsuo leaned back in his chair, a small smile on his lips as he allowed himself a well-deserved ten second daydream. Miaka had a voluptuous figure, round but curvy from childbirth and maturity. Her breasts were so large as to spill out of his hands if he filled his palms with them. The thought was very arousing. So were her thin waist and round, flaring hips. She was so different, than...

The ice, the memory of ice kicked into his mind suddenly, filling his nostrils and lungs with frigid temperature. A young girl was undressing before his eyes, his wide orbs taking in the skinny curves even as someone was squawking next to him to NOT look. But he had seen enough before a hand clamped over his eyes. Long, white legs, smooth, bare arms with strange bracelets adorning the wrists. The best part had been the small, high breasts.

The girl was shivering so badly, that tiny nipples poked the front of her undershift. Tetsuo remembered... that even though it was freezing here, a certain lower region beneath his robe and coat was very warm. And he had wanted to lend her that warmth and wrap her up in his coat, save her life from the ice...

"Are you listening, Tetsuo-kun?" Eri asked. Tetsuo blinked and the emotions and images of his memory vanished like a bubble in the air. Gone... like the young girl in them...

"Yes, Eri-kun. I'm sorry," Tetsuo bowed his head. His unruly bangs flopped into his eyes.

Eri smiled. "That's okay, but we still have alot to go over! Now, if you want to add something here, you hit this button..."

Tetsuo wasn't sure what remembering in broad daylight could mean. He was sure they were memories and not fanciful dreaming. Ice? A cave? A hidden treasure and ghosts of... Genbu warriors?? Who the heck was Genbu, anyhow?

The memories whispered in his ears while awake now, and they had intensified since his meeting Miaka in the flesh. Tetsuo wasn't sure he could ever tell her something this strange... because she might not think anything of it.

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"Does Hiroshi seem alittle nervous to you?" Sadako asked curiously. Naisen clasped one arm around her waist, pulling her back from the wall of students walking past them. The tall blond shrugged.

"He's been having a hard time of it lately," he admitted, remembering tears welling up in stormy blue eyes. "And his mother is acting strange."

"Miaka-san is?" Sadako asked, her tongue favoring the familar name. "But just look at him. He looks like he'll rocket through the roof if you touch him!"

She pointed and Naisen peered over the heads of the crowd easily until he found their friend. Hiroshi seemed lost in thought, his face pink with whatever was going through his mind. When Toya shyly moved past, Naisen was quick to notice. How he moved his fingers against Hiroshi's and the blue-haired boy stood ramrod, as though electricfied.

And Naisen could feel the heat between their gazes even from here.

"Good for Toya," he said finally. "He got what he always wanted."

"I was wondering how that'd go," Sadako admitted. "It takes alot to come out. I was wondering how Hiroshi was going to go with it..."

"You're saying you think he's made for a woman?" Naisen asked. Sadako laughed.

"Oh, no, it's just that his mother made him for love, and he answered the call of the most unlikely version of it..."

"You want what you want," Naisen murmured into her ear. "Isn't that right?"

Sadako flushed, closing her eyes against his strong shoulder. The very memory of disrobing in a strange tent on campaign and settling on top of ready, stiffened flesh swept through her mind. "You should know that," she retorted.

Naisen smiled lazily, his blue eyes slit. "I do. Just stay with me and let me show you how."

"What, now?" Sadako asked in mock confusion. Naisen squeezed her; let her go.

"And they say boys are vulgar."

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"Are Yui and Miaka in?" a smooth male voice asked. Tetsuo looked up from a stack of papers and went cross-eyed. And he looked between, one, make that two, identical bookends!

"Nuuuuh... sure. They're in the break room," Tetsuo was reluctant to give out. The twins grinned as one and turned as a finely-tuned unit to move to the back. Tetsuo felt a rush of irritation and stood abruptly.

"Wait!" the wheels of his chair snagged on the carpet, so quick was his movement. "Who are you?"

"Yui's husband, Saito," Saito flashed his white teeth at him. Tetsuo nodded at that, before turning to his brother.

"Wait a second, what about you??"

"A good friend," Asakura grinned, his pearly whites glinting in the sunlight. Tetsuo's eyes were quick to notice his broad chest and powerfully wide shoulders forming a path to his dream woman, his twin at his side.

And Tetsuo hated him for it. His jealousy hung, still, when Yui squealed and wrapped herself into Saito's widespread arms.

Miaka reacted more conservatively, but far too familiarly with the other one for his liking...

"Asakura-san! Where have you been hiding yourself?" Miaka asked. Asakura sketched a courteous bow.

"I've been keeping away for too long, haven't I?" he asked sheepishly. "I promise not to remain a stranger." Miaka smiled as he winked, and turned positively red as he raised her hand to kiss.

Tetsuo seethed in the background.

Sensing his battle chi flaring up across the way, Miaka blushed and pulled her hand away.

"I should hope not," she said. Saito clasped Yui's hip, pulling her for a close squeeze.

"Yeah, well, Brother Mine here already paid for that little prank, so he'll be welcome around the house again."

"I didn't think it was that bad! Mariko got a real kick out of it," Asakura protested.

"That's WHY I was sore with you," Saito said dryly. "She's been planting little booby traps all over the apartment until she saw we punished you too!"

Yui and Miaka giggled as Asakura scratched the back of his neck.

"Yeah, stop teaching my daughter bad habits!" Yui said with mock anger. Asakura pressed one hand over his heart.

"I do so solemnly swear that by the time I have a child... I'll have taught your kid all the bad tricks!"

"Mou!" Yui swatted him while Miaka tried to act as mediator.

"Speaking OF, Miaka-chan IS available now," Saito teased. Miaka's face sobered, more sensing than hearing Tetsuo's sharp inhale. Her young man was hovering close to their prepheral vision, trying to act as if he weren't.

Asakura's eyes twinkled but Yui looked between her best friend and the red-haired student lingering around the front desks.

And she saw a link between them, almost seeing the red string of fate knotted and tied between the two in midair. She could feel the heat of Suzaku's fire tinging the air... And she knew her brother-in-law had a snowball's chance in hell with her dear Miaka.

Asakura was oblivious to Tetsuo, and watched his friend with growing interest. "Miaka-san has her pick of men, whenever she's ready," he declared. "But that's always been the case."

Saito was always teasing him about her; now that Taka had passed away, he was all but trying to play matchmaker between the two with his unsubtle but well-meaning hints.

Miaka blushed prettily, the shade of pink that made men and boys go crazy. She had certainly had her seishi on one knee, their fists clasped over their hearts in the unspoken oath of undying devotion to her.

"I don't know," she said carefully. "I'll have to wait and sort my feelings. A widow's sure to have alot of baggage for anyone to want to brave."

Tetsuo's eyes softened. She had lost someone very dear to her, and really shouldn't be giving him the time of day. Oh, Miaka...

"But you're braver than most," Saito protested. "You have strength enough for any man!"

"You always take care of us," Yui added. "Let someone take care of YOU for a change! Who knows, you might like it."

'I could take care of you...' Tetsuo amended in his thoughts. His amber eyes watched Miaka with unspoken zeal.

"I want to..." Miaka said. Her eyes wrinkled at the corners with sadness. "Just let me choose in my own time."

Tetsuo let out a small exhale. He smiled and sat down to finish his files.

"I'll be there if you need a shoulder to cry on," Asakura said smoothly. His handsome features pitched into a blush. "Anytime. I care about you, Miaka-san!"

Saito raised a fist and winked at his brother. Way to take the assertive approach! A tiny storm cloud appeared over Tetsuo's head. He gloomily regarded the far more handsome man with undisguised loathing.

Miaka looked swept away, but she nodded gamely. "Thank you, Asakura..."

'Amiboshi...thank you.'

As if hearing her thoughts, Asakura patted his coat pocket where a flute lay. He winked and walked off with Yui, whistling an easy melody. Saito gave Miaka a small hug and looked over the top of her head at the sulky college student.

"He has the feel of Suzaku's touch all over him," he whispered to Miaka. The aged Suzaku no Miko straightened her spine. Her serious eyes met his.

"Does he feel the same as the students you saw a few weeks ago?" she asked. Her heart pounded hard against her chest.

Saito nodded once. "Yes. He is one of your own. May he be one with love in his heart for you."

"They all loved me, in their own way. I was the recepient of their affection," Miaka smiled fondly. "Tetsuo-san remembers some of his past life, I'm sure of it."

"Break it to him the right way," Saito said. "Lucky we trusted Yui with all our hearts and knew what she said of our memories to be right."

Miaka clasped his arm fondly. "You always loved and trusted her."

"Yeah... well, the wife's waving at me. Give our best to Hiroshi-kun."

"I will..." Miaka started to get a headache at the thought of her growing son. He was almost a man himself.

"How will you introduce him to all of this? Tetsuo's not too many years older himself."

Miaka blushed, embarrassed to be indicated she was robbing the cradle.

"That's the worst part of all of this," she confessed. "Tetsuo's the first I've met, and my others are all younger!"

"They did look high school level," Saito admitted.

"We'll have to talk more on THAT later," Miaka said. Eri made her way over and bowed a greeting to Saito.

"Miaka-chan, is there any way you can come cheer this big lug up? He's been moping the past hour or so!"

Miaka laughed and nodded. "Of course, Eri-kun! Well, bye, Saito."

"Take care of business," he winked rogueishly. He ambled to meet up with Yui and his brother. Miaka turned towards her irate, younger man and stopped a hand's span away.

"Tetsuo-kun? How was it today?" she asked. Tetsuo had been pillowing his head on his arm, an apparent victim of depression, but shot straight up at the sound of her voice.

"Miaka-san! Uh, it went fine! Think I did pretty good," Tetsuo showed his teeth in a fierce grin, flexing one bicep proudly.

Miaka brought a hand to her mouth, smiling at his macho display. Tasuki always was one for upping his persona with gallant pride and Tetsuo was no exception.

"That's good to hear. I want to know that we'd be keeping you alittle while longer," she couldn't keep the joy out of her voice and Tetsuo watched with rapture.

"Yeah, well... you can never keep me down!" he exclaimed and was rewarded with a chuckle.

"I imagine I couldn't," she murmured and Tetsuo's eyes went wide at the wording. He flushed bright red.

"I say my impending victory over the kiddies deserves a celebration. How about we go for some tea? My treat." And it would be, for he had scrimped his money for the week down to the very cent.

Miaka nodded, and they both glanced at the clock. It was ten minutes to three, before their workday was over. Cleaning up paperwork could take from an hour to longer, but Tetsuo wouldn't have any from a first day, and she had been very careful to complete hers on time.

"I'd love to," she said and was rewarded with a dart of pink across Tetsuo's facade of youth.

They were early today and she'd have time to get home and begin Hiroshi's dinner. She'd have to tell him and she wasn't looking forward to it.

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Direction was not his forte.

He knew every subject at school and was even advancing into college courses. He could spew out most any information or fact you needed or didn't need.

But tell him to go to the corner store and Lost became a constant companion.

"It's gotta be around here somewhere..." Chen mumbled. He pushed his high ponytail off his forehead and studied his slip of paper, even daring to turn it upside down if that would help.

It didn't.

The short teenager was so absorbed in his self-induced angst over direction, that he didn't notice the passersby deliberately stepping around him as he slowed up movement on the sidewalk. The small black shoes took the teen past the hem of a robe and naked toes encased in sandals.

Chen stumbled and almost tripped over the draping robe's edge flung onto the sidewalk, and then of course, almost over the monk it was attached to.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" Chen blushed. He grabbed onto his backpack strap with one hand, trying to keep the heavy book-laden bag from flying into the other boy. The smooth scalp of the boy bowed low into Chen's vision.

"That's alright, no harm done," he offered. Mitsuko straightened and found the student's eyes with his own. He felt a thread of fate fly straight from him into the slightly taller teen.

He clutched his broom, his face paling. 'I know you... I know you...'

"You..."

"Huh?" Chen asked. He looked down at his immaculate uniform, his freshly shined shoes and his pack. It had to be his hair. Everyone was always telling him to cut it or something, but he, always with his nose in a book, never had the time. "What is it?"

"Uhmm..." Mitsuko blinked hard, stared, then turned his gaze to a normal one. "Nothing. Nothing at all." The reincarnation of Miboshi scratched his hairless neck with a tiny hand.

"Okay..." Chen said, wondering what THAT was about. He uprighted his piece of paper, mumbling.

"Anou..." Mitsuko ventured. "Are you trying to find something?"

"Yeah," Chen admitted defeat and handed over his notebook sheet. "I was supposed to find this corner store for my parents because they carry a certain kind of seaweed wrap, and I have no idea where it is!"

The small monk regarded the open boy with a steady gaze. So vulnerable, just like back then...

"Uhm, you do know it's right behind you, right," he said, leaning on his bamboo broom. Chen looked at his paper, then across the street behind him, and turned bright red.

"Oh, dear kami," Chen cursed.

Mitsuko smiled wryly. "It's okay! I can't find my way around out much either; as you can see, I don't get out much." He lifted up his left wrist where his prayer beads were tied firmly. He clacked them together for the proper effect.

"But still, thank you so very much!" Chen bowed. His odd ponytail flopped over his scalp. Mitsuko shrugged, feeling oddly uncomfortable. His teacher, the shrine owner's son, swept along, his wide robes flowing.

"Mitsuko-kun! Have you lit the candles for our evening patrons? I did not give you cause to play with your friends!" he snapped. The monk blushed red, the tips of his ears pink and he bowed low.

"I'm sorry, Teacher. This one needed directions and I was assisting."

The teacher took a glance at Chen's offered paper and gave him an odd look. "Can't you find any place just down the street? What are they teaching children these days?"

Chen's shoulders sank defiantly. "Quite alot, actually," he retorted. Before he could recite his marks in college courses, Mitsuko bowed, giving the senior monk cause to be satisfied.

Chen grumbled as the tall, bald man flapped away in his robes. "So I get lost easy, big deal!"

"I wouldn't take it to heart," Mitsuko offered serenely. "He's just cranky in his old age."

"Well, thanks anyway..."

"It's Mitsuko," Mitsuko offered. Chen bowed.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Chen."

Mitsuko smiled although his eyes were sad. 'You have no idea about me, just like back then.'

"A pleasure."

"Well, I really have to get going. Maybe I'll stop by sometime!" Chen offered. The small shrine looked tidy and inviting, and where was a student without occasional prayers for luck?

The monk smiled and bowed again. "Of course, that would be wonderful. Well, bye..."

As the slightly-taller boy jogged through traffic to the store, Mitsuko sighed, feeling the masks of his past life changing hand again and again and again.

The husband he had taken, hurting the wife with his actions. The little girl, effective but embarrassing to his male ego. The old senior monk in Xi-Lang; his disciple. And then...

'It was so easy to take you over... just as easy as the others.' The monk's apprentice sighed and began sweeping with earnest.

"I'm sorry."

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Miaka dashed into the front door of her home as if the hounds of hell were nipping on her heels. She wasn't in any danger, except for her opponent, the clock. Her watch read 4:45 pm., and she may or may not have beat Hiroshi home. It all depended on whether he went to study or play with his friends.

Naisen's clear blue eyes pierced her mind's eye as she tossed her purse at the coat rack, and toed her shoes off in the entryway. "Oooh... got it," she murmured, stepping up and into the life she had shared with her husband. A pang of guilt stabbed her as she took in the familiar surroundings Taka had readily used.

Miaka cradled her arms, her hands massaging the elbows. She had had a wonderful time with Tetsuo, but even though she longed to talk about their time with his past life and their old friends, she couldn't, so a constraint had been placed on her usually glib tongue.

Taka had been the same way, somewhat, but he had at least KNOWN about his former existence as a Suzaku schiseishi. Tetsuo did not.

"I'm just a sucker for all of them..." Miaka mumbled, feeling her spirits sink. Tetsuo was a handsome, young man, as brash yet chivalrous as Tasuki. He filled out gallantly as a man, though his shoulders still needed alittle more room to broaden; his height, already impressive. His eyes had been bright as they sat and chatted, papercups of tea and the remains of a giant chocolate cookie spread between them. He had even nudged the larger portion of the cookie at her, and she almost could cry, remembering how Tasuki had always shared treats with her.

There were other occasions she had not permitted herself when she walked with him as Tasuki. When he licked melted chocolate from his long fingertips, Miaka chose to stare as his white teeth parted to allow his tongue's release. When he caught her eye, she gave him unspoken words in a slow gaze.

Well, so what if he had no memories of his past life? He was still here now and that's what mattered!

Cheered, Miaka moved through the living room on her way to the kitchen. A hunched figure halted her, scaring the living daylights out of her.

"EEK!" she shrieked in typical Miaka fashion and jumped back for the sofa. Hiroshi looked up from the desk chair he was half-crouched, half-kneeling on. A textbook lay open next to the living room PC and her mature son watched her, amused.

"I doubt that's going to be much of a weapon, Ma," he said dryly. Miaka peeked out from under the sofa's throw blanket, eyes wide. She lowered the blanket and smiled sheepishly.

"I didn't know you were home. How was your day, my love?" she brightened. Taka's son hooded his eyes, even as he tried to fight a tell-tale smile.

"It was... eventful. Mama, Toya told me he had feelings for me the other day."

"Oooh..." Miaka steeled herself for another discussion of 'love was love', no matter if it weren't the birds and bees but honeycomb and nectar. Hiroshi lowered his face, his bangs covering his eyes. Maybe it hadn't gone well... "What did you say to him?"

"I told him... you said never to be afraid of your heart," Hiroshi made out. Miaka nodded, Taka's face far from memory. Tetsuo's smiling facade filled her mind instead.

"If your heart tells you it's right, well... it must be," she agreed.

"I kissed him, Mama," Hiroshi confessed in a sudden rush. Hesitation tinged his proclamation, as if expecting a homophobic tirade. His long fingers twitched, then laced together.

Miaka watched his fear, and smiled softly. She laid her hand gently on her son's.

"And how did you feel about that?" she asked quietly. Her eyes were warm. Hiroshi stared into them, and leaned into her ready understanding.

"I liked it! I really liked it... and him," Hiroshi said, his lips tingling with the memory. They stung with the memory of whipping sand...

"Well, that's good..."

"But I saw something when we... were... you know," Hiroshi gestured. "I saw a desert and a boy with a bunch of old-time actors. He was so lonely and looked up at me!"

Miaka's smile froze on his face and she felt the hapless urge to scratch her cheek as the muscle twitched. Was this... a memory from Tomo?

"Oh?" she asked weakly. Hiroshi spread his hands, his eyes wide.

"It was so strange, and I told Toya what I saw... and he said it was a memory of another life! How is that possible, Mama?"

"I... I.. I don't, that is..." Miaka said weakly. She felt as caught as if she were five and had one hand in the cookie jar. The urge to flee was strong.

"And Toya said you might know something about that..." Adolescent suspicion filled his blue eyes. "Does this have something to do with the pictures in your room?"

"HUH?" Miaka sweat-dropped and began to regret leaving out the framed memento of her full group of beloved seishi. She should have listened to Taka and put it away... "What are you asking me, son?"

Hiroshi laid his elbow on his textbook and swiveled his chair to face her. "Who are the men in that picture?? You know the one, where you're still in school. I recognize Papa, but who are the rest?"

Oh, boy. And Miaka thought she had all the surprises she could handle in her life already.

"They're... they're... they were friends I had when I was young," Well, that was certainly true.

Hiroshi's brow creased as he nodded at that. That made sense. "But who are they? Where are they now?" he pressed.

Miaka's eyes dropped in sadness. "They've all passed away, Hiroshi. I was very close to them..."

Hiroshi felt bad, taking his mother's word and stopped his inquiry at signs of her grief. 'She has to be thinking of Papa now, too... oh, shit, I went and made her cry.'

"Oh... I didn't know, Mama. I just wanted to understand," Hiroshi said, abashed. Miaka smiled serenely and ruffled his hair.

"It's okay, precious. I know you meant no harm."

"And that's everything? There's nothing else?" Hiroshi dared to venture. Miaka smoothed the pictures on her buddhist altar in the living room solemnly. Her face was red.

"No... nothing else," she said with the jerky tone of the liar. Hiroshi watched her fingers settle onto a small golden phoenix statue, bought on impulse by his mother. It's faux-ruby eyes seemed to gleam brightly.

"Okay..." Hiroshi knew that even were he to beg and plead, she would never let up any of her secrets. She had told him something and for the time being, it would have to be enough.

"Do you want a snack, sweetie?" Miaka asked, back in her eternal Mommy Mode. Hiroshi held up a bag of chips and smiled.

"I'm okay. So, why were you so late today?" Hiroshi wondered. His mother surprisingly blushed and put a hand to her cheek. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good...

"Oh! I, uh, was welcoming a new member of our Adminstrative staff. We went out to tea," Miaka said lamely. And that part WAS true. But Yui and Eri had gone after a short while, leaving the two alone none-too-discreetly.

"And her name?" Hiroshi stuck a pencil between his teeth and turned back to the computer monitor.

"Shinwa Tetsuo," Miaka gave meekly. The pencil fell out of Hiroshi's mouth. A man? His mother was out with a man after school?

"Tetsuo... a he?" Hiroshi asked, stunned. It was only ten months since Papa had died... ten months!

Miaka nodded rapidly, trying to warm Hiroshi to the idea. "Yes, he's a college student from Osaka, studying anthropology and psychology..."

'And his eyes fill me with Suzaku's flame... Oh, Tasuki... '

"Uh huh," Hiroshi said, sounding defeated. Poor Papa. "Can I go to Toya's house?"

Miaka's smile deepened. "Of course... won't you tell him and his parents hello from me?"

Hiroshi nodded and collected up his hoodie sweatshirt. He grabbed his schoolbag, and stepped into his sneakers. As he walked, he watched night develope, his wandering pace leading him closer to where his apparent boyfriend lived. Boyfriend... it really didn't seem to be real.

But Hiroshi was glad to have him when he was greeted by the beautiful pair that were his parents.

"Hiroshi-kun! An honor as always!" Toya's father wore his hair long, as his son did. It was carefully plaited in three sections and was longer than his wife's elaborate braid.

"What brings you out here?" Toya's mother chirped, her flawless beauty stunning the teenager.

"Oh, nothing much, you know, homework and all," Hiroshi mumbled, shy. "Is Toya here?"

"He's in his room," his mother pushed him forward gently. "Why don't you go on ahead?"

Hiroshi heard a double-meaning there that she probably hadn't intended. To him, it sounded like the perfect solution to his self-induced agony of his mother's attraction to another man. "Thanks!"

He left the couple to their scripts and laptop, and made his way to the bedroom of his friend. Where other teenagers might have hung anarchy symbols or other equally warning signs from their bedroom doors, a simple kabuki mask hung from Toya's, the oddly painted face seeming to watch the teenager as he neared the slab of wood. He always had liked the mask, even though it's swirls of black against white made his eyes ache. The empty eyesockets followed his every movement as he approached.

Hiroshi knocked once and the door flew open as if in anticipation to his arrival. Hiroshi smiled.

"Hi," he blushed. Toya looked adorable in a shirt too large for him and knee-length athletic pants. The collar of the shirt half fell off the boy's slim shoulder and Toya hauled it up gracefully.

"I heard you in the living room. You okay?" Toya asked. His heart pounded hard.

Hiroshi shrugged, his skinny shoulders rising up then down. "I dont know... I think so. I found out that my mother met this new guy at her work. And he's in college."

"Oh..." Toya sat daintily on the edge of his bed, tucking his thin legs under him. "That's not too much older than us."

"I know," Hiroshi said miserably and flopped onto his back. "Oooof! I keep thinking if Papa saw her this way, he'd be sad."

"Or pissed," Toya said. Tamahome's scowling face came to mind. He leaned to the side and cautiously laid his small fingers on Hiroshi's chest. Hiroshi looked up owlishly at him. "I wouldn't worry about it too much... your dad was a great man. But people get lonely. We both know this..."

Hiroshi nodded and lay back as Toya settled his head against him. "Now aren't you glad you decided to open your big mouth?"

Toya blushed and petted his fingers shyly over Hiroshi's side. "Yes... "

The two boys twined and kissed.

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Two forms danced around each other in the seperated silence of enclosed space. The silhouettes stated the forms were of a boy and girl, alone in the gym storage closet. One gestured, the other pleaded with outspread palms.

"I told you, we can't ever do this! I'm in love with someone else," the girl said. She twirled a long lock of purple hair nervously. The boy placed his large hands on her shoulders, his chin hovering over the top of her head. He was enormously tall for his age, and aptly proportioned.

"All I'm asking is a chance. He hasn't shown any interest in you like that," the boy said, trying to win her over with logic. The girl shook her head wildly, tears stinging her eyes.

"Don't say that! He's just going through so much," the girl pleaded. The boy settled his chin in her hair, and turned her around to face him. The girl's pleas were muffled against the wall of his chest.

"I will never hurt you. I want to take care of you. I love you," he said with all the earnest zeal of youth. The girl looked undecided until he leaned low and captured her mouth with his own.

As if opening a floodgate, the two scrambled against each other, pressing close thruogh clothing loosened by unskilled hands. The heat suffused them both and they burned; clung to each other, as if trying to mate through the obstacle of linen. The boy, inspired, lifted her up against him with strong, steady hands. The girl twined her hands through short, spiky hair.

The sliding door to the storage closet rasped open suddenly with a loud clack, making the guilty party seperate in a haze of passionate confusion. The unintended intruder stared, first unbelieving, then in warring betrayal.

"Nana?" he asked the girl who had been his friend for life. Her uniform top was askew across her petite breasts, the sailor bow untied in her companion's haste. The purple-haired beauty was red all over and wouldn't meet his eyes.

Then he turned to the culprit, his eyes narrowed. "Mareshi??"

The tall boy looked as if he wished he were anywhere else but here, he was so embarrassed. But Hideyuki was faring far worse... humiliation and betrayal thrummed throughout his entire being.

"Hideyuki..." Nana whispered, holdiing up one hand beseechingly. The slim boy turned and ran, his ponytail flying over his shoulder. "Hideyuki, wait!"

Mareshi's shoulders slumped as Nana gazed adoringly at the disappearing back of their beautiful friend. "Nana..." he pleaded.

His friend looked up at him with tears cascading down her cheeks.

"Look what you did to him!" she screamed. Mareshi recoiled as if struck.

"I didn't know he was there, I promise you!" The tall student argued gently.

"I'm going to check on him..." Nana wrestled from his hands and ran off.

"Nana, wait!" Mareshi called. His deep baritone bit into Nana's ears as she tried to outrun the very sound of attraction.

End for now

Oh ho, how was that? Nuriko's incarnation carries a torch for Mit's! That came out on the fly and was more fun than I thought it would be. Who will help little Hotohori heal through this ordeal? Houki or Shyoka??

I had alot of fun with this one. Obviously I have plans for Tetsuo and Miaka (evil grin). And so do the Four gods for the rest. Chiriko was fun to explore as most often look over him. So was Miboshi. Least looked at character of the series, as well as Ashitare. Quickest deaths too :P Hiroshi is becoming an enigma to me; he has no soul link to the book world, yet he is a son of Suzaku no Miko and Tamahome's reincarnation. I think that entitles him to a piece of the celestial pie, so to speak.

I may be seen as overlooking Taka, having him die so early in this story, and I am more of a Tasuki fan, but I still see him as a rational, gentle human being. I hope I wind up doing him alittle bit of justice.

Til next time! Much appreciation to you all.

Most sincerely

Pen Rose 10/05/08


	11. Touch to Flame

Here we go again. Moving, getting a house, work, and now my dog's passing has all happened in the past few months of living. I can only press on and live my life how I want to. At least I kicked the writer's cramp away. I said writer's cramp, not block. I KNOW how this story is going to go. The hardest part is getting it out and making myself do it. I know, I'm so lazy....

Rest in peace, Angela. I love you, you old girl. My 13 year old baby....

Thanks to my lovely, my Skye. Thanks for always being there for me especially over that weekend. She cried more for my dog than I did, I think. I know you loved her, sweetie. Thanks for rehashing the funny stories of her. And forever thanks for helping me to 'compose' the lovely operetta, "Angela, get the hell out of the trash" when we first moved in together. (grin)

Thanks to Miss Kitty Lynne! My FY fics are in part also dedicated to you, guru of Banditscribe group. Tasuki being reincarnated to come to Miaka came about solely thanks to you! So it's safe to say this story actually went somewhere becasue of your emails :P Tell me what you think, please!

Thanks to iluvmitsukake, for always reading, always loving and always reviewing. Thanks for all your kind words! You always make my day. Really!

Thanks for the lovely words, Kisaki Akizuki! They brought a warm smile to mine visage ^_^ They always cheer me up!

Thanks also to fushigiyugi fan, Delton Ruu, AnimeRose Assassin, swordbunny4486 for being the awesome peeps that ya'll are. Thanks for typing words telling me what you thought!! It's an honor.

For my few but dedicated reviewers, I decided to type up a list of the Suzaku reincarnations. The Seiryuu are listed in chapter one:

Tasuki is Tetsuo, a young man of 18.

Hotohori is Hideyuki, a boy of 16.

Nuriko is Nana, a girl of 15.

Mitsukake is Mareshi, a boy of 16.

Chiriko is Chen, a boy of 15.

Chichiri is Chichiri, alive and well in Taitsukun's palace.

Taka is deceased and currently out of the reincarnation cycle. His spirit currently resides at Taitsukun's palace with the company of Chichiri and the Four Gods.

Hiroshi is not an incarnation from the book world, but is a son of Miaka and Taka.

Mariko is not an incarnation from the book world, but is a daughter of Yui and Saito.

Disclaimer: The likenesses of the series Fushigi Yuugi belong to Watase Yu, not to me! If only we could all be so talented.

Dreams Alter Reality chapter eleven

"Touch to Flame"

Tetsuo was tired.

He had been working at the elementary school over a week now. While he worked, talked with Yui and Eri and crushed over Miaka, he blinked exhaustion from his youthful face. Each afternoon, he tried to spend as much time with Miaka as their evening schedules would allow.

But even as Tetsuo was hopeful she'd want to see more of him outside work, he still had to rush to catch his evening classes at the university. Languidness rattled his head like a drum as he wrote notes from lectures and trudged to make the evening trains back to Maison Ikkoku. What little time he had in between cussing out the rowdy occupants and studying, he took to sleeping those precious few hours before dawn.

Then he'd get up and start the process all over again.

It wasn't like he wasn't working hard to pay the billls. It wasn't like he wasn't trying to study his courses and pass.

But Sukunami Miaka had him so thunderstruck, he was incensed. Her smile followed him into college, her words echoed on the train ride home. Her scent aroused him beyond aching during the day.

High school erections had nothing on this. Some days, Tetsuo had to wear his dress shirt untucked to cover the obvious push of fabric at his crotch. It wasn't terribly professional, and Principal Sumiyoshi had commented on it, but he was working around little kids, for kami's sake. He didn't want to scare the living crap out of them because of unrequited lust!

And love. Miaka was a gem of a woman that men wanted to provide for. Tetsuo knew the pang of lust affixed to his sex ran like a pulley to the erractic pounding of his heart. It really hurt to breathe around her sometimes. But that was okay, because he knew the breathless emotion was linked to a far deeper, most sought-after emotion.

'I could almost blame her for making me this way,' Tetsuo thought.

He rubbed his jaw, where scratchy pebbles of unshaven growth poked his fingers. But he could never fault Miaka for inducing this feeling in him. She had the ability to make anyone love her.

Besides, his mother and sisters had all pounded a respect-or-else feeling towards women in general. He only knew how to touch with gentle hands.

Tetsuo yawned and looked up over his desk. Miaka was coming his way now, Yui ever at her side. The two were done with sessions, it seemed. He, on the other hand, still had a stack of paperwork, and any phone call or brat to come along and interrupt it.

He was also behind in a few of his courses, so he'd snuck in a couple of textbooks as well as his notebooks. Tetsuo wondered seriously if an eighteen year old could have a heart attack from stress as he tried to cram even MORE studying in between his work load and talking to Miaka. Sighing, the red-haired student closed his spiral bound book with little sketchy chickens doodled across the front. He waited for Miaka to approach while Eri gathered up her bag and lunch.

"Happy ten o'clock, Tetsuo-kun!" Miaka chirped brightly.

"Hi, Miaka-san," Tetsuo said. He, Yui and Eri were content to see how happy she was these days, blossoming around the newest office addition. Tetsuo noticed she started dressing in more vibrant pastels and did her hair in elaborate braids or buns. Today she sported a lime green scarf casually swathed around her neck and shoulders, and a pair of bright red chopsticks protruded from her bun like attaenae.

"How are your sessions going?" he asked. Yui shook her head, long hair flying. A blue stud glinted in her left earlobe.

"Only trouble with mine today. Are parents even trying, or are we just doomed?" she lamented. Miaka giggled and poked her oldest friend.

"We're parents too, Yui, so I say we gave our world a chance."

"Maybe, but we need to supply more do-gooders, and that's what I say. Saito's begging for a boy," Yui sighed.

"Mou, Yuuuui," Miaka blushed, glancing at Tetsuo. He felt the odd pain of difference between their ages as well as a surge of fire to his loins. He would love to have a baby one day as well, but before the crying and diapers that would absorb his existence, he would like to relish achieving the act of creation.... again and again and again....

"Yes, please educate us child-less heathens before it's too late," he grinned. Miaka gasped and gripped his shoulder in a friendly gesture. Tetsuo widened his knees, trying to stave off another erection. Her arm movements made her breasts push forward against her blouse.

Yui sighed and spread her hands helplessly. "Can't say we can help you there, Tetsuo-kun, until you've had a child yourself! You really have to work to make them good to society."

'Now Miaka on the other hand....' Yui mused. she could almost see the sparks jump and crackle between the two.

"Well, Yui-san, I'll try my best when that day comes..... ack!" Tetsuo yawned widely, his mouth spread wide. "Sorry..."

"You've been so tired lately," Miaka's eyes glazed in concern. "Are you pushing yourself too hard?"

"Ah, no, never!" Tetsuo refused to put down his masculinity for a second. "I just... can't.... ah, sorry.... seem to keep from yawning!"

Miaka looked around. Eri and Sumiyoshi had already gone to lunch just now and the coast was clear. Daring surged through her being, making the older women feel a teenager again. She blushed and tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear.

"You need to take a nap and rest, Tetsuo-kun. If you want... there's a sofa in my office."

Tetsuo's brain rocketed out of orbit and his nose started to trickle vestiges of crimson lust. Was she... implying?...

"Thank you, Miaka-san." He stood and bowed. The top of his head almost brushed her breasts accidentally on the way down. Miaka trembled. Yui sighed and set her bentou on Eri's desk.

"I'll stay and run interference. Don't get caught sleeping by Sumiyoshi," Yui warned. Tetsuo nodded and made his way to the office door. Yui gave Miaka an obvious wink. Miaka followed, red in the face.

Inside, Tetsuo looked around, amazed. A bookcase stood sentry on one wall with a standard filing cabinet for session files. Interestingly enough, volumes of chinese history and anthropology filled the shelves as well as psychology tomes. The sofa sat against the opposite wall, near to the desk. Tetsuo took a glance at her personal effects before sinking into the couch. Framed pictures boasted of a happy family. Oddly, there didn't seem to be a portrait of her late husband. Only one, a full family shot, hinted to the man she had given vows to, until death did them part. A tall blue-haired man stood straight and proud, a gentle smile on his lips. Miaka fairly beamed beside him as their son, young in this picture, clung to both of their hands.

There were also pictures of Yui and her husband, and two men and a woman Tetsuo didn't know. All of them were smiling and egging on the picture-taker.

Tetsuo swept his gaze from the last object of his curiosity, a small phoenix statue, as Miaka closed the door. The voluptuous woman smiled sheepishly.

"I don't have a blanket, but the sofa's comfortable," she said sweetly. Tetsuo smiled and placed his palms on his spread knees. He was pleased to notice the small glance she gave his waist before looking away.

"That's okay, Miaka... you've done more than enough." Miaka blushed at the drop of suffix, indicating a more intimate connection, tucked away from prying eyes.

"So it's just Miaka now?" she said softly. Tetsuo smiled gently, his cheeks tinting pink.

"It's always just Miaka to me," he said and fell to the side of the couch as his next yawn almost split his head open. "Gomen!"

"I understand, Tetsuo. Sleep.... I'll be here when you wake up." Miaka pushed on his thin shoulders, helping him to lay down. Tetsuo gazed back up at her, his vision blurry with affection and exhaustion.

"Or when Sumiyoshi comes back..."

Miaka laughed. "Either way... I'm here for you."

"Thank..." Tetsuo fell to sleep in the middle of his sentence. Miaka smiled and watched him begin to snore. His mouth hung wide open and one of his legs crooked up at the knee. As she quietly sat at her desk, Tetsuo spiraled to dreams....

* * * *

"Oh my.... Tetsuo-kun is headed this way, no da!" Chichiri chirped. The spirit of Sukunami Taka looked around solemnly.

"How is that possible? He hasn't passed on."

'Like me....' The sudden chill of jealousy. Chichiri shook his head. His white bangs pierced the air.

"He has entered a dimension of this realm by a dream pattern. Your magicians call it "rem" I believe, no da. His dream self has entered while his body remains the tether on your world, no da."

"He must be here by Suzaku's command," Taka hazarded a guess. Chichiri nodded and shifted his lithe weight. Tasuki's iron tessen hung, attached to his belt, and patted against his hip.

"I wonder what he wants with him, no da. Is it true he has found Miaka-chan, no da?"

Taka nodded, the edges of his ethereal formation of his soul fanning out slowly. "He has... and Yui-chan as well."

Chichiri nodded. "And the Seiryuu no miko found all the incarnations of her seishi. Suzaku must be sending his to Miaka-chan as well."

Taka smiled sadly at his friend. "It may be a time coming for all of Suzaku's Seven." Chichiri sobered.

"That makes me sad to say as well, no da."

"You don't have to put on a front with me, Chichiri-san," Taka said, his eyes crinkling. "I know you're afraid of the passing still."

Chichiri took off his smiling mask and his good eye met Taka's with a deep feeling of warm understanding. "I confess I am, Taka. Forgive this old fool... all the others took the leap without hesitation in their heart. And I survived all our battles and linger ever on."

"It can't be that much longer, Chichiri-san. Maybe when I'm placed, you'll be reborn with me."

"I would like that. I would like that very much," Chichiri smiled. Taka floated past, peeking through the crack between the heavy iron doors to the Four God's cavernous chamber.

"Let's see what Suzaku has decreed for the old flameboy."

Chichiri brightened and took a spot at the spirit's side. He sneezed and shivered horribly.

"So that's Tasuki now," he marveled. "It's good to see him again."

"I know..." Taka watched the outlined form of his younger, living competition with just a tinge of trepidation.

* * * *

Tetsuo stood before Suzaku, gaping up.

"I've met you before," was all he could muster. "I know it! Definately seen you..."

"My fire warrior," Suzaku deeply entoned. "You do know me even if through a dream. They were premonitions, of course, to your destiny."

"My destiny?" Tetsuo asked, his stomach feeling light. "Did I live another life? Is that what those dreams mean?"

"Yes..." Suzaku nodded. He fixed the red-haired youth with a deep, hooded stare. "They have been coming to you while in the waking world as well for they are not only dreams. They are memories to who you once were and stood for."

"But.... I'm dreaming now!" Tetsuo waved his arms in chibi-form. The sleeves of his dress shirt flapped. "I'm even see-through! I just fell asleep in Miaka's office. How do I know this is real??"

Suzaku chuckled and arched one wing back. "My Star of Tasuki was always so impatient. Yes, my impetuous seishi, you ARE dreaming. It was the only way to form a link to you as our sutra is being rewritten and a deeper bridge can be made."

Some of that oddly made sense. Tetsuo tried to take it all in as his head reeled. "Ooookaaaay.... but why do you need me now? If I really used to be Tasuki."

"You have found the Suzaku no Miko," Suzaku's eyes pierced through Tetsuo. "Your dreams sliding to waking memories because you have all but secured your destiny."

"You're talking about Miaka, aren't you? I knew she was important," Tetsuo whispered. "How is she my destiny?"

Suzaku crossed his powerful arms, his wings spreading wide. "A place at her side. You have reached a point to consummate what you could not achieve in your last life. Events have come into place where through your own deep wishes, you will fulfill which I desire."

"Tasuki!" Miaka's childish voice called joyfully through Tetsuo's mind. Suzaku's eternal eyes pierced him with eons of longing that bordered on pride... and a hint of jealousy? Of him, scrawny, mortal Tetsuo? He must be crazy to have seen that flicker in his gaze.

"Oh yeah? And what is that?" Tetsuo asked almost cockily.

"What you mortals do not seem to value or cherish. Day after day, I have seen humanity throwing its own happiness away with both hands." Suzaku's tone was almost complaining .

Tetsuo felt his hair stand up on the back of his neck as he bristled at the implication.

"Don't go lumping me into that group! I ain't like everyone else and I'm gonna take care a' Miaka! Whether she needs me or not, I'll love her good 'til she can't stand it," Tetsuo spewed and glared at his former life's patron god.

"Oh my," Chichiri murmured. "He finally admits it in the flesh. He's come alot further than he once did, no da!" He remembered a distraught Tasuki in the months before the illness that had ended his life. How heartsick and tortured he was.... he loved their miko, had shown it in obvious ways when poisoned by Hikou's spirit. He had forced himself on Miaka and been in hell ever since. Miaka had said she forgave him but..... you never knew these things until it happened to you.

"Huh?" Taka asked suddenly beside him and looked at the old monk expectantly. Chichiri sweat-dropped. So Taka didn't know of Tasuki's visit to Miaka seven years ago! That bandit certainly was good at putting him in a pickle... best to focus on how to go about it, if Miaka hadn't told him either.

"Ah, that is... he really beat himself up for years about that time at the inn, no da!" Chichiri backpedaled. He cursed himself and shook his head, eyeing Tetsuo's dream form through the doors. Thanks for the ugly situation! Tasuki had always been good at getting him into them.

Taka's eyes saddened but he nodded. "He must have cared about Miaka if Hikou manipulated his darker side. I knew this and still, embraced him as my friend. He always was so stand-up and grand, I knew instantly that's not how he's like."

Miaka laying on the bed, her skirt pushed up and her blouse and bra pulled aside. Her lower torso held down by muscular, trousered thighs....

"Anou sa, no da," Chichiri gave weakly. "He stopped though... he would never hurt Miaka-chan."

"I know...." Taka smelled the first wind of something wrong, but tried to shrug it off. They both looked back inside.

In the chamber, Suzaku's lips spread into a deep smile at Tetsuo.

"Fulfill your place at her side," he said and spread one hand wide. Tetsuo recoiled as flames surged forth, but he was merely wrapped in warmth instead of being seared by the fire's kiss.

"Wait, Suzaku....Suzaku!!!"

The fire swept him away. Tetsuo plummeted, his mouth open in a wordless scream.

* * * *

Miaka had been idly sorting her files at her desk as Tetsuo slept. He was a sloppy dreamer, arms and legs half off the couch, his mouth wide open in a drooling snore. His half-tamed hair stuck out in odd waves now, making his toned down office appearance beyond moot.

Miaka carefully set a stack of papers down and regarded the young man with a thoughtful smile. There were traces of Tasuki in the student's face, as well as hereditary differences, for this new life. Her eyes were quick to note the black roots among the part of wild red hair. Tetsuo didn't wear beads or earrings as Tasuki had, but he made any outfit look natural on him. The similarities were a ready need to please or cheer. Tetsuo carried himself like a man who was comfortable with his body, much as Tasuki had.

'I can't believe he's come back to me... I wonder if he'll ever remember like the twins do.'

Miaka stroked the top of a file, her crinkled eyes half watching her friend. He had the soul of Tasuki, but did he have the seishi powers? Miaka was ready to put these random musings from her mind when Tetsuo appeared to stop breathing.

It was the constant whisper of his inhales and exhales that told her he was deeply asleep. And when it stopped, she looked up sharply. Tetsuo's chest lay slack still, his lips were parted and no sound issued deep from his lungs.

"No..." Miaka jumped from her chair and fell to her knees beside the couch carelessly. Her hands hovered, worried in midair, then lay over his wrist for a pulse. His arm was hot to the touch....

"Tetsuo... Tetsuo!" Miaka laid her head to his chest. Fabric and buttons squished against her cheek. She was really starting to work into a good panic when Tetsuo arched on his shoulders, his mouth sucking in a desperate plea for life. His eyes were wide open and his amber orbs darted, found Miaka practically on top of him. His frantic flop had pushed her onto the carpet and they stared at each other.

The moment had dragged on long enough.

"Miaka..." Tetsuo made out hoarsely. His right wrist glowed red, silhouetting his shirt sleeve. Miaka's eyes teared.

"Are you okay?" she made out before her eyes dropped to his sleeve. Her heart thumped hard. "What is..."

"My guide to you... it led me to you..." Tetsuo said with a dry throat. Suzaku's wide spread hand filled his mind, gesturing. His Suzaku no Miko...

Miaka inched forward on her knees and rested on her legs before him. Her hands were pressed to her chest in a symbol of questioning before they reached for him. Her widespread fingers hovered, then rested on his heated flesh. Tetsuo let her lift his right hand and unbutton his shirt sleeve. Her smooth hands pushed the fabric back.

A symbol blazed on his wrist, casting red light to her warm eyes. She had studied ancient chinese with Yui and her brother for years, so it wasn't hard to decipher the intricate character. Even before she knew how to read it, she had seen it often before.

Wing.

Miaka looked up into Tetsuo's eyes. There was no trace of uncertainty in her gaze. Tetsuo's gaze was very warm. "You remember...." she whispered.

Tetsuo shuddered when her small fingers cupped his rough cheek. He caught her hand and turned it over.

"As much as I can. I knew you, in another place and time... and I was meant to find you."

"Tetsuo..." Miaka's face flushed as he leaned closer.

'It is Suzaku's will. Live.... live and love....'

"Miaka.... now it's my turn," Tetsuo's eyes gleamed. He pulled her hard against him. Miaka gasped wordlessly, her hands pressed against the expanse of his chest. They were so close against each other...

Tetsuo leaned his head down. He captured Miaka's mouth with his own.

Miaka's fingers widened against his chest, pushed slightly.... when Tetsuo's arms circled low around her waist, those trembling fingers wound up around his neck. They sank into his hair.

* * * *

Hideyuki was avoiding her. Nana tried to catch up to him all day but he speedily left her in his dust. It was starting to really piss her off. First thing in the morning, he took off running. Second after first period. And now he had only glanced over his shoulder and took off again, leaving her in his dust!

"Damn.....Hide! Stop!" Nana puffed, dragging after. His ponytail waved back at her before he made it around the corner and out of sight. Nana stopped and leaned against the side of the building to catch her breath. Damn the lacross team and all the laps they made him do! And damn him for not listening to her!

"I have to let him know...that he's the one I want!" Nana whispered. She closed her eyes and tried to still her heart from pounding out her chest. Her small hand pressed between the bow of her uniform top, and felt the vibration of her desire.

"Nana," a rich baritone rang right into her ear. Nana jumped and looked up into rich, brown eyes. Mareshi smiled uneasily, his eyes crinkling kindly. "Did you catch hold of him?"

"No...." Nana admitted defeat and let anger ride away. She clenched her fist and took her hand away from her top. "Mareshi, what are we gonna do? He just won't stop running! And I'm not exactly on the track team, ya know..."

Mareshi let his giant hand rest on her small shoulder, and waited for her to tell him no. Nana looked up at him, looked away. Her fingers creeped up to touch his. Wait, she was asking him something, have to pay attention... "What was that?"

"I said, did you ever think we were made for something else? Something more grand than all this."

"What could be more grand than all this?" Mareshi wondered. His right hand throbbed and began to glow. Nana covered it with hers, from view of the other students.

"You know what I'm talking about. If Hide stops long enough.... will you tell him I want to see him?"

Mareshi touched the bottom of her chin. "I want to see you... and I'm right here."

Nana's eyes were big, but she pushed his hand away. "I'm not. I need to get him back..."

Mareshi's eyes fell and let Nana walk away.

Hideyuki stopped running about half a block away. "Whew! When she'd get so damned persistant?" he muttered. The slim boy tossed his ponytail over his shoulder and panted.

A group of girls walked by, giggling and he straightened, adjusting his tie. He wasn't in the mood, but still, he had to keep up appearances.

One of the girls broke away from the gaggling brood of hens, or so he thought. His mood went grey until wide, bright eyes met his.

"Uhm, yes?" he asked smoothly. He had to swallow to keep from sighing.

The girl smiled and smoothed a lock of hair behind her ear. "You're Hideyuki, aren't you? I've had my eye on you for awhile. I'm Sayuki."

"Sayuki... it's a pleasure. What did you want to see me for? Is it class?" Hideyuki went on, not linking two and two. Sayuki blushed and looked down.

"No, it was more about a date than class...."

Hideyuki felt his insides lurch and nodded.

* * * *

Miaka gasped under Tetsuo. They had moved on the couch together after an eternity of kissing. She couldn't believe she was doing this. She had always been so careful, so sure to seperate her relationships from her intended fiancee; to carefully set Hotohori, then Nuriko, and lastly Tasuki, on a backburner of honor.

She had been so careful, so sure!

And now she didn't know what was what anymore. She didn't expect to find Tasuki's reincarnation here, or to be in his arms now.

"Hmm!" Miaka parted her mouth from Tetsuo's, gazed once into his passionate, half-glazed stare and gave a small cry as he settled his clothed body carefully between her legs. Her long skirt began to push up and to the side from the position, but before she made to push it down, Tetsuo gently held the fabric down so she wouldn't be exposed faster than she wanted.

Just as Miaka was congratulating herself on this modest move, Tetsuo lowered his weight from his hands to his elbows, half laying with her. Miaka surprised herself by wantonly reacting to his approach with open arms and lips.

She surprised Tetsuo by instinctually moving her pelvis up and against the suspicious bulge protruding frrom beneath Tetsuo's loose dress shirt. Tetsuo gasped and gave a small cry as his clothed reaction was pressed against her warmth.

He was pushed so hard, it was going to hurt unless something gave.

"Miaka..." he said as memories of her as a girl flickered with the here and now.

How he had always felt envious when Tamahome got her this way! And the few compromising positions he had walked in on had made him seethe with jealousy.

His older Miaka was gasping against his neck. Tetsuo flushed with happy warmth. She was his now! His beneath him..... his to pleasure and please! He couldn't wait to get started. Miaka watched as his hand, slightly shaking, rested between her round breasts; tentively opened one button from her blouse.

Miaka's hands rested against his chest, her eyes open with surprised anticipation. She wanted him to, she wanted to feel him. The youth above her blinked his amber eyes.

They were the same as Tasuki's.

Tetsuo swallowed and opened her blouse. His hand made it inside to the fabric of her bra when a harsh knock sounded on the office door.

Bam bam bam!

"Wack!" Miaka gasped and Tetsuo fell off her onto the floor. His legs stood up in midair as Miaka gathered her blouse together, and peered down at him.

"Who is it?" she called, before pushing Tetsuo's knee. "Are you okay?"

"I think it's broken," he lamented. Miaka blushed and helped him to stand.

"Who do you THINK it is, it's Yui! Now hurry up with whatever you're doing and get out here! Sumiyoshi and Eri are in the entrance way," Yui's voice rang out irritably.

Tetsuo was on his feet already and straightening his clothing as Miaka answered her. He swept both hands through his touseled hair and adjusted his belt.

"Oh man, oh, Miaka, did you see..." he stammered, like the youth he was.

Miaka cupped a hand to his raspy cheek and smiled deeply. The corners of her eyes crinkled. "It's okay! We have time," she grinned.

Tetsuo enfolded her in his arms and kissed her again.

"This time, I'm taking my shot... I've waited long enough!" he exclaimed.

Miaka giggled against his cheek and enjoyed his strong embrace. It was torture to disengage herself from his arms, but she had to.

"We will, we will.... I just have to..." she tried to make cleaning gestures and pull herself away, but Tetsuo grabbed her wrist impulsively.

He enfolded her small hand between his longer digits and kissed the back. "Maybe we can get started tonight. Want to... go out for dinner?"

Miaka looked back, surprised. But her smile was wide and ready. "Yes! Yes.... please...."

Tetsuo's grin could have blotted out the sun, it was so big. "Yes! Oh, Miaka, I can't wait to begin..."

"Neither can I," Miaka said softly. She laughed when their soft moment ended as Tetsuo bulled out of her office and threw himself into his desk chair right just as Sumiyoshi strode into the lobby.

* * * *

He was seeing quite alot.

With each passing day, rather, with each passing moment, Hiroshi was seeing more and more of the things people held deep inside and hid from the world. If he glanced, the wispy edges of glowing yellow would tug at his attention. When he squinted and focused, the shattering clarity of memory would dance before his eyes.

Past acts, past loves, past regrets, past hurts, even past lives. Significant moments of people's beings were witnessed, often to his blushing dismay. He hadn't known what to do with all of this overload of information.

So Hiroshi had gone to his friends.

From Sadako he'd gleaned abit too much from her past life experiences to look at her the same way. She quickly caught on, to Hiroshi's embarrassment, and fled with her face in her hands. Yes, she'd been a Seiryuu schiseishi.

But she had also been a whore. She had been sold by her own parents. She had garnered a talent for sex at a heavily emotional and bodily price, and had used it well.

She had even shared it with....

Naisen stared across the way at Hiroshi, his blue eyes bluer than sculpted ice. The two childhood friends locked gazes, regarded the other. Naisen had alot of past-life memories swimming around his head, too. Some of them were eerirely similar to the things he had gone through while they were in grade school.

But Hiroshi was amazed to also see stronger, more adult versions of Toya and Sadako with him. They had all shared alot more than friendship from childhood. It was enough to make Hiroshi sick with jealousy.

But when Hiroshi apologized to Sadako about looking at her memories, she was in his arms hugging him the very next instant and making his heart settle down just alittle bit. He felt better, beyond an inkling of jealousy. Whoever they had been before, they were with him now, and they all had each other's backs.

Toya laughed nervously at his side, but when Hiroshi smiled and opened his arm to him, the smaller boy turned aside. He was hiding something. And even when Hiroshi dared to try and peek, Toya had effectively blocked his memories from him. How he found how to do this, Hiroshi didn't know. But there were things in this grand, past life that his friends didn't want him to see and know.

Toya looked at his boyfriend's profile, his heart sickened. How could he tell him that once many years ago and in another form, he had cast a spell of illusion upon his mother and tried to rape her? Hiroshi would hate him. He would never speak to him again. Even if said mother welcomed him with open arms and even knew who he was. It was in her gaze sometimes, never judging. Just... knowing.

And it killed him inside.

"What was that, 'Roshi?" Toya made out smally.

"I was asking if you wanted to come over after school today. I've been waiting for an answer for three minutes now," Hiroshi asked, feeling low. Toya squeezed his hand and nodded rapidly.

"Course I would... " I would see you anywhere.

Hiroshi nodded, his eyes lowering. Things were feeling weird today. He went through the rest of his day, feeling something was probably wrong. Like his world was going to be upset in an instant.

The feeling did not abate when his mother swept through the front door, home from work, humming and singing to herself.

"Hi, son! How was your day?" she asked brightly and smothered his face in kisses. Hiroshi watched her, amazed.

"It was fine, Ma.... what's gotten into you? Did something happen today?" he scratched his neck with one hand. When Miaka sighed, he knew the upset was about to happen. He could see wisps of a kiss that had happened....

"Yes... I was asked out on a date. By Shinwa Tetsuo, the young man at our office. He'll be here in an hour, you'll get to meet him, in fact!" Miaka fairly bustled her way into the kitchen. Hiroshi watched, astounded, as she paused to give a moment's prayer at their altar portrait of Taka, and then rummage through the refrigerator.

"He's coming here?" Hiroshi asked. He felt sick.

"Yes! I better get going, I still have to get ready. There's some leftovers for you for dinner, son! Will you be okay?" Miaka smiled at her teenager, her eyes bright.

Hiroshi made himself nod, not trusting himself to speak for just a moment. "I'll be fine.... Toya and the guys are coming over, too."

"Good," Miaka approved. "They're good company for you. I'll be out in alittle bit, would you listen for the door for me?"

Hiroshi nodded and watched his mother dance on to her bedroom. He slouched and paced around the kitchen before making his way down the hallway. As he passed Miaka's bedroom, he heard her singing lightly to herself. Wafts of her favorite perfume tinged the air, tickled his nostrils. Hiroshi inhaled old memories of the times his mother wore this scent, when she went out. It had always been with his father, or Auntie Yui or his Uncle Keisuke.

Now, his father smiled sadly from a portrait set on the family altar, and Hiroshi was smelling the preparations of his mother going out.

With another man.

Jealousy and anger clawed through his gut like ice; he couldn't help it. His beautiful (aging) mother, her auburn hair tinging silver in long strands, was going out with a college student almost half her age.

Hiroshi was feeling the angst of teenage depression try to settle on in, even as he tried not to care. But he DID care. This guy better not hurt his mother, or get fresh with her. The fifteen year old boy clenched his fists and stalked through the living room towards the kitchen. As he neared the fridge, the doorbell rang. Hiroshi stopped, his hand in midair, and made an about face. A glance through the peep hole heralded guests instead of the intruder he had been expecting.

"It's about time, 'Roshi," Sadako flipped her hair over her shoulder. Naisen leaned against her and held out his fist to Hiroshi. The other boy pressed his own back in a gesture of camaraderie.

"What's going on, guys?" Hiroshi asked, looking over Naisen's shoulder; Toya was pushing past to get to him impatiently. Hiroshi's stomach loosened alittle and he leaned to accept the chaste kiss his boyfriend bestowed on his smooth cheek.

"You looked alittle weird today, so we opted to cheer you up. Aren't you glad?" Toya dimpled. Hiroshi finally managed something of a "real" smile. Just alittle one.

"Then get in here." He couldn't help sweeping a glance behind them to see if Shinwa Tetsuo-san was on the way.

No one in sight. Good.

He couldn't help shutting the door alittle extra hard to express his sentiment about the whole situation. Toya slung an arm around his waist, relaxing him just alittle bit further.

"So why so glum?" Naisen rumbled. Hiroshi flopped onto the western-styled sofa with a sigh. Toya settled in immediately and cuddled close.

"Mom's going out on a date tonight," Hiroshi dropped his personal bombshell with careless aplomp.

The three incarnated souls looked at each other all at once. Hiroshi felt his stomach cramp again as they shared a moment he obviously wasn't part of.

"Hey! Why is that so important to you??" he demanded.

"It's just..." Sadako began, looking to Naisen for help. He understood completely. In his memory Miaka was running after Tamahome; forever Tamahome.

Now she was dating another man and Tamahome's incarnation was dead. It seemed full-circle, and quite surreal.

"We didn't know how she was doing. Apparently alot better," Naisen said easily.

"Yeah, let her heal. She needs to find herself," Toya murmured, running one finger coyly down Hiroshi's arm.

' Now that her soul mate is gone... '

"So who's she going out with?" Sadako asked.

"Some dude from her office," Hiroshi complained.

"That's all you have for us? 'Some dude?' Come on," Toya leaned close, simpering. Hiroshi blushed and smiled.

"Okay, I guess it's no big deal..." Hiroshi had to cross his eyes to clash out the image of black and white paint over Toya's face. It was happening again.

Toya played with the end of his braid nervously. "Smells nice in here," he commented.

"It's Mama's perfume," Hiroshi said. He could hear clinking from the master bedroom. "She only wore it with my Papa."

"Be calm," Sadako said, her eyes twinkling. "We'll just see what kind of guy that's gonna take her out and deal with it from there."

Naisen nodded, his eyes as still as glaciers in his skull. His skin felt electrified, charged. Something was happening here.... something part of some grand scheme, and he was going to witness the start of something.

In the bedroom, Miaka finished messing with her hair, and gazed at her reflection in the mirror. She looked beautiful, ready.... and nervous as all hell. She had been married for close to two decades but hadn't been on many dates. She felt as giddy as a school girl again!

"It's okay, Miaka... It'll be okay! It's Tasuki," she murmured lightly. She opened a drawer in her bureau and pulled out a frame. The smiling faces of her warriors gazed out through the glass and Miaka's eyes grew warm. She kissed her fingertips and pressed them to Tamahome, and finally on the gesturing bandit beside her younger self.

Outside the apartment, Tetsuo was having similar convulsions. He was ready, dressed in a suit jacket and tie he had kept packed in his backpack for an emergency like this. He had combed his tousled hair into attractive waves, and popped mints like the nervous student he was. But he was far from ready to knock on the door. He knew he had the right home. He found the nameplate beside the door that read 'Sukunami residence.'

But Miaka was in there. As well as her son. And he wasn't that much older than him. Tetsuo wondered if he was home, if he would greet him. What he would do, and what he was expected to do if he wasn't welcome.

"It'll be okay, Tetsuo... It's Miaka! Just go to it," Tetsuo breathed. He sighed and tried not to throw up. He raised his large fist, and knocked twice hard. His right wrist seethed in flame beneath his jacket sleeve and Tetsuo covered it with his left hand.

"Hiroshi! Can you get the door, please?" Miaka called from her bedroom. She hurried, throwing her necessities into her purse.

Hiroshi looked at his friends and shrugged. Had to be the good son now and greet the ingrate. "Okay! I'm going," he called. He stood and adjusted his tee-shirt.

When he opened the door and gazed into Tetsuo's nervous grin, he grabbed the door frame, as winded as a physical blow the stomach.

That red hair.... that easy grin and those amber eyes.... Hiroshi was seeing them in his mind's eye as they flash-countered with the image of his mother, very young and very drunk. She was passed out on a bed, and large hands..... HIS hands... they were all over her! He was on top of her and his mother was screaming....

'STOP! TAKAAAA!'

Hiroshi couldn't breathe, and his eyes were wide in rage as he Saw. Tetsuo scratched the side of his head and tried to smile.

"Uhm, hello! I'm Shinwa Tetsuo. I'm here to take out Ms. Miaka.... you must be Hiroshi," Tetsuo offered. He held his hand out to shake.

Hiroshi sucked in air and steadied himself. The edge of his lip quirked up in an odd smile as he closed his hand over Tetsuo's and gripped. Tetsuo's smile faded as the youth gripped him hard enough to crack the bone.

"Nice to... meet you," Hiroshi said. Tetsuo flexed his hand when he got it back and tried to smile it off.

"Okay then.... well... is Miaka-san ready? I hate to keep her waiting," Tetsuo grinned sheepishly.

Naisen, Sadako and Toya craned half off the couch to get a good look as he stepped inside the apartment, Hiroshi barely letting him cross the thresh hold. They were all quick to notice the gesture. The three incarnated souls felt the surge of familiarity as they saw the past image of the young bandit they had all encountered before. They had their own memories to draw on aside from Hiroshi's gift.

"That's the bandit...." Sadako murmured. Flashes of red hair and a fang-tipped mouth agape in a shout of obscenity at their group exploded in her mind. Toya nodded, his braid falling over his shoulder.

"He was so close to Miaka-san then. This is incredible," he murmured. Naisen gave a non-commital sound, a more personal memory forming before his eyes.

The loud-mouthed braggart holding a flaming iron fan before him, his coat sleeves pushed up and his seishi symbol blazing as bright as the flames he wielded. His grin had been wide as he cockily threw Naisen's offer back in his face and moved to protect Miaka.

"It IS him, alright... Miaka-san must know what she's doing if she's going on a date with him," Naisen murmured. Sadako nodded and leaned against his shoulder.

"You may be right..."

"I'm ready!" Miaka said and swept into the room. The teenagers stood to stare and Tetsuo stood at attention, his chest thrust out.

"Ah... I, uh..." he stammered. Hiroshi raised an eyebrow at him. So he wasn't that much older in action, after all. He had better watch it if he knew what was good for him.

"Miaka-san, you look wonderful!" Toya called. He hopped up gracefully from the couch and held a hand out to her. Miaka smiled and they bowed to each other like dancers.

"Thank you, Toya-kun. You look marvelous yourself," she twinkled. Toya flushed a pretty red and tossed his braid.

"You flatter me," he simpered.

"Have a good time, Miaka-san!" Sadako called. Naisen merely nodded, his eyes deep. Miaka nodded her thanks and brushed past her son to get to her date. Tetsuo's face flushed as her eyes held his.

"Ma...." Hiroshi said. He couldn't help feeling jealous. He couldn't help it!

Miaka turned from Tetsuo and grinned her motherly grin. She brushed a palm to her tall son's face and brushed his blue hair off his forehead. "Be good! Tell your friends they can't spend the night and should be out by ten."

"Yes, ma'am," Sadako called from the couch.

"I will..." Hiroshi said quietly. "Have a good time..." I guess.

"Thank you," Miaka smiled serenely and closed the door behind them.

Once the slab of wood was closed, she and Tetsuo shared a wide smile and their hands clasped.

"I was waiting to do that!" Tetsuo confessed. Miaka squeezed his fingers and swung their hands as they walked.

"You were a prince in there. I hope Hiroshi wasn't too rough with you!"

"No... just protective," Tetsuo said uneasily. Hiroshi had stared at him as if he knew who he was.. had been. "Let's worry about us from now on."

"What did you have in mind?" Miaka asked almost coyly.

Tetsuo grinned. "I've been saving from my new job, lady counselor. We're going to have a regular night on the town! Fancy dinner, maybe a drink or two and some lost time to catch up on. How's that sound?"

"It sounds fantastic. Just what I needed, in fact," Miaka exclaimed. The handsome pair swept out into the night, laughing easily together.

* * * *

"We assure you, we'll have him back by ten o clock, before your gates close," Tetsuya said smoothly. The senior monk stood almost nose to nose with him, his fingers clenched so hard around his broom, they were bone white.

"Ten o clock! Ha! Ten you say, giving my successor a curfew! You should conduct your business with him on my grounds during daylight hours! I don't even know HOW Mitsuko knows you!" the senior growled.

"I'm ready!" Mitsuko called from the shrine doors. He was bundled up in his usual robe, his robe's shawl, and a heavier shawl overlapping that. He looked half his age and half his small size, a child playing grown-up in adult clothing. He was smiling happily though, his small hand thrust into Asakura's. The tall sandy-haired man looked out of place, in his business suit and carefully knotted tie. He smiled as he helped the tiny monk make his way across the cobblestones.

"So we're ready to go," Asakura added, flashing an easy grin to the senior monk. He didn't look too happy about any of this.

"Hmmf!" he turned his attention from Tetsuya to the tiny teenager. "Are you sure you wish to go? Even for a few hours?"

Mitsuko nodded rapidly, his teeth showing white in his smile. "Hmm hmm! I'll be fine, master, don't worry about that. Tetsuya-san and Asakura-san are good friends to me."

"We'll look after him, sir. You just take care," Tetsuya bowed. The senior huffed and flapped away. His robe bellowed around him like an angry force of nature.

"Well met, Tetsuya-san," Mitsuko grinned. Tetsuya smiled and took his other hand.

"Let's go, Keisuke and Mayo are waiting for us."

"I've only met Mayo-san once," Mitsuko marveled. "Had she really rescued the book's portal like you say?"

Asakura laughed. "She has, when we were young in this world. She and Keisuke have done more research and have things to talk with us about."

"About your reincarnation from that book world," Tetsuya added. A schoolgirl stopped and gave them a weird look getting the end of that conversation. She shrugged and continued on her way.

Mitsuko watched a sweet stand with interest, then sobered. "I've seen the dragon here before, and my memories have returned, waning, now returning with force. My master has been incarnated several times, and told me about being a farmer at the turn of last century where his memories are strongest. He married his wife here because she looked like the one in his last life. I am no stranger to all of this."

"Seiryuu has touched this world before," Asakura said with the ringing tones of the truth-seeker. "All of them have when Tenkou approached with his brief reign. Maybe they saw an alternate realm if the book world collapsed, and maybe that's why we were sent here."

Tetsuya shuddered. The Shishin Tenshou's red cover elasped into his mind. "I don't even want to think about what would happen if that were so."

"Come on, you guys! Don't be so serious so soon. You won't meet any girls that way," Mitsuko said knowingly. Tetsuya and Asakura looked at each other and laughed.

"Maybe not so. What do you know about it though?"

"Plenty. The school girls come in and ask my advice ALL the time!" Mitsuko thrust his chin out. His bald head reflected the lamp lights as they came on.

The three men reached the Yuuki residence of Keisuke and Mayo and rang the bell. The door opened, a small boy wrestling with the knob.

"Mommy, Unca Tetsuya is here!" he called. Tetsuya leaned down and chucked his chin.

"Coming! Satsuki, why don't you let them in?" Mayo approached the door and smiled. "Come on in, men. Keisuke's readying his study for you."

Tetsuya and Asakura carefully stepped out of their dress shoes while Mitsuko easily kicked his sandals off. The bundled monk hopped up from the entryway and seemed to float down the hallway. He stopped once and bowed low to Mayo. Satsuki grabbed the hem of his shawl and got swept away with him, giggling.

Mayo smiled and took Tetsuya's arm. Asakura carefully followed them back into Keisuke's rather masculine study. The man in question was crawling around under his desk looking for something and grumbling.

"Daddy!" Satsuki screeched. Keisuke yelped, jumped and cracked his head on the underside of his desk. He came back, his brown hair somewhat parted halfway, his hand on top of the bruise forming.

"Aaaaah.... hey guys," he said sheepishly before some explicit material got out to his son's ears. Satsuki ran to the baby carrier beside the desk and batted at Sakura's hands. The infant squealed and waved her fists around.

"Oh, there's your girl... hi, little baby. It's an honor," Mitsuko said seriously. He gathered his shawls and robe and made a proper bow. Sakura looked at him cross-eyed then grinned.

"Won't you all sit down?" Mayo asked, gesturing. Asakura and Tetsuya were already seated on the sofa. Mitsuko flapped over and made a place. Keisuke stood up and leaned against the desk. Satsuki tugged on his pants leg. Keisuke picked him up and put him on the desk.

"How are you doing, Mitsuko?" Keisuke asked. His kind eyes scanned the little monk.

"Fine...." Mitsuko was used to the gaze. When the older men had found him at the shrine, they welcomed him, but sometimes... the wary gaze to his past actions was there. He carefully folded his hands and took the information of the Four Gods being seen by Keisuke with ready ease. He was astonished, but then again, he really shouldn't be surprised. If he was there, why wouldn't the Four be peeking in?

"This is all so amazing," he stammered.

"Tell me about it," Keisuke smiled, his eyes crinkling. "I can't help this bad feeling about all of it though. Like it's really going to hurt me, whatever it is they want."

"Now, dear, it's just an ominous feeling. I've had it about the Book before," Mayo chided. She couldn't help shivering and settling down with Sakura in her arms, plucked easily out of the baby carrier. The infant grinned and pressed close, sighing.

"I wish it were merely so..." Keisuke added.

"The Four must be moving in action to do something," Mitsuko volunteered helpfully. "I can feel it almost every day. I mean, we're all here, we're all finding each other, and we're all living our lives. It couldn't simply be as easy as over."

"Wouldn't you say we're entitled to some peace and quiet?" Asakura asked.

Tetsuya nudged him, smiling. "Come on, just ask Miaka-chan out and you might get some of that."

"Oh fine, if you insist," Asakura grinned. Keisuke played with his son's little shoes and quirked an eyebrow.

"Hey, that's my little sister you're talking about. Keep your evil thoughts to yourself," he said dryly.

Asakura moved aside on the sofa and let Mitsuko hop up to take a seat. His robes poofed around him and half settled on him and Tetsuya on either side.

"Okay, okay, I'll be good. You have to admit, I've been decent about it. I know she needs time since Taka-kun passed. She needs.... to find herself," Asakura murmured, his eyes glazing. Miaka had chosen Tamahome instead of memory-loss with him in the book. Always Tamahome, and he had stood by her for it. But this time.... maybe he could....

"She will," Tetsuya said, holding his hands out to Mayo. The small woman carefully laid her daughter in his arms and he bounced the baby gently to make her laugh. "Miaka has pulled through everything with iron will before. Mere heartbreak couldn't hold her back now."

"I don't know if you're talking about the same woman here," Mayo put in. The men and the teenaged monk stared at her as she asserted herself. Mayo smiled and took center stage.

"I didn't know Miaka-san so well until I felt her with me, beside me at the end of the book's resurrection. I felt her heart on a spiritual level.... and even though she was strong, and resilient, and helped lift me to do what I had to... I knew she would have been broken if her warriors had suffered physical defeat and ceased to be."

"Mayo..." Keisuke murmured in wonder. His younger wife smiled and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"You fellows keep overlooking matters of the heart like it can be solved with a time period or a band-aid. Miaka's heart makes her who she is. I don't know what the Four Gods are planning, but I hope they leave her out of it," Mayo finished. She got off her soap box and sat on the arm of the sofa beside Asakura. He grinned and bopped her shoulder affectionately.

"Who could put it better than our Mayo-chan? I bow before your knowledge," Asakura smiled, not unkindly. Mayo allowed herself a satisfied smile and winked at him.

"Now that you admit it..."

"But the Four Gods," Keisuke interjected. "I just wish they'd come out to say what it is they really want."

"You said it yourself," Tetsuya said. "They want to write the rules themselves, not follow the spell of a scroll."

"But they must want SOMETHING..."

"That same thought has been nagging me, too," Asakura added.

"Me too. I keep thinking Seiryuu must want something if I can hear him sometimes," Miboshi threw in.

"I don't like not knowing," Keisuke complained lightly.

"Who doesn't?" Mayo asked. "All we can do is try to make the best of things when they come forward again."

"I wish it were that simple," Tetsuya said.

Miboshi nodded.

"And on that dread note, who wants tea?" Mayo asked.

Miboshi raised his hand shyly and the men nodded.

End for now

5/17/09

About a full month since my dog died. On Tasuki's birthday, yet! You can bet I'll remember the date ^_^;; I can't believe I finally sat down to finish this! I must always remember, to work on what I have going. I popped in Eikoden to listen as I plugged along, the english version if you can believe. I cant' read subtitles while I type, so yech :P I enjoy the original voice-actors far more unfortunately.

Listened to some Guns n Roses while proof-reading. "Sweet Child O Mine" and "Don't Cry" seem to work for Hiroshi right here. I've been slogging on my Best Of cd until Chinese Democracy came out. It's about time they released a new album!

What does Hiroshi have in mind for Tetsuo and how will the date end? Stay tuned and hopefully it'll be sooner than five months (wince). I've had this almost finished for three months, and am so sorry it took awhile to type up the rest. I hope it satisfies! Please please take a moment or two to review. It is always appreciated!

Sincerely yours,

pen rose


	12. Fire's Decree

Here we go on my story again...let's just say I was feeling it and it came about finally :P As for the ugliness in this chapter, well....don't forget all the asshole stuff Tamahome said to Miaka in the original series. It's apparently a dark side so of course a touch of it would go to Hiroshi. Tama, Tama, Tama....what are we gonna do with you? Did ya think I'd forget all a that?

Much love for the peeps online, Miss Kitty Lynne, iluvmitsukake and the rest. Hope someone out there is still reading it :P

Miss Kitty Lynne, I hope this perks your days and brings you abit of light. I finally saw a glimmer in my activities recently and was inspired finally once more. May all feel a touch of life's warmth :P

Music I listened to while dreaming and typing up my badly handwritten notes: Lady Gaga's Paparazzi, Bad Romance.... and piano renditions of her music. "Meet me Halfway" by Black Eyed Peas (and give this video a chance). FY music, of course, "Fun house" and "Sober" by Pink. I think Sober is a good song for Tomo for some reason, listen to the lyrics and tell me if I'm crazy or not.

Disclaimer: penpaninu does not claim to own Fushigi Yuugi nor the likenesses of its characters. They belong solely to Wataase Yuu and her gorgeous talent. Genbu Kaiden is a marvelous extension of her long tale and a favorite of mine to match her original series. All to Watase.

Dreams Alter Reality chapter twelve

"Fire's Decree"

Tetsuo and Miaka saw each other every chance they had. Tetsuo worked hard at the school, stealing glances at Miaka whenever she passed and stole heated kisses she pressed upon him when breaks would allow. They were worse than young lovers; tea breaks were taken in private, pushed up against a wall. Lunch break was in public, but heated gazes and deliberate touches on wrist and knee were part of the menu.

Tetsuo was growing crazy. They hadn't slept together yet and he wondered in all likelihood when they ever would. As a hardened, lusty young man, he had his share of painful erections as he went around his routine around Miaka and then on the phone with her after his night classes before bed. One look across the office, he was hard. A purred rendition of his name across their cell phones and his hand was stroking the outline of his want as he voiced his declarations through the vibrating decibels across Tokyo. He was going mad for her. Despite her son being a downright turd when he came for dates or to visit, he was going mad for want of her.

He was being careful but Miaka was driving him insane. Tetsuo idly wondered, looking up from a doodle in the margins of his college notes that looked suspiciously like Miaka's full curves, if she wanted him as badly.

* * * *

Miaka was growing crazy. It hadn't been long since Taka was gone, not even two years! But she already knew she wanted Tetsuo in her bed. It wasn't just lust for the unbridled, untamed younger man, or at least Miaka liked to think it wasn't--she cared for Tetsuo and saw Tasuki in his eyes. She was growing to love him as she had once loved Tasuki....because he WAS Tasuki. He was the fire seishi incarnated in her time, to be with her.

Miaka had to reflect to herself if Suzaku wanted her to hook up with his seishi so badly to have sent Tetsuo here to her... but she wasn't complaining. Each night she whispered sweet and sometimes naughty little nothings to him, and each morning she woke bright and early (sometimes having to linger and touch herself like a teenager for it HAD been so long) and would bounce around her house, greeting Hiroshi and rushing off to work eagerly.

Yui was ever a happy bookend to her days and when he visited, Saito was ready with a wink as he nodded at the flameboy. They knew who he was and it warmed Miaka that Tasuki's incarnation had every good wish.

On the only downside, she wished her son would brighten up....but he was a teenager and feeling his father's place being pushed upon. He was just being young, but Miaka would be patient with him. Tetsuo was being perternaturally calm about it and she loved him for it. Even now, Tetsuo's amber eyes were boring a hole right through her blouse across the way. Miaka licked her lips. When her eyes met his, she barely had to flash a rather fetching "come hither" look over her shoulder and her young man was on his feet, bounding to meet her in her office.

Miaka's back was to him as he entered and shut the door rather deliberately. She shivered when she heard the click of the knob being pushed in to lock and peeked back. Tetsuo's chest was rising and falling, his shirt was untucked but beneath the fold of shirt and the lap of his slacks, she could see a push that made her mouth feel dry and her body spark with excitement.

"Tetsuo, I can't quite reach, can you help me?" she heard herself saying. She didn't move, inviting Tetsuo to come up behind her. Tetsuo was stepping up close in a moment, his mouth open, eyes downcast in lust. Miaka widened her stance and looked down at the ground. Tetsuo's large hands covered hers on the bookshelf and she audibly gasped a sweet "moh!" when she felt something hard press between her lower flanks and up.... where she desperately needed it.

Tetsuo stood still, his throat dry and his heart pounding in his ears. They had never gone this far and he may have been going farther still. He was about to pull his foot back from between hers and step away when Miaka pushed back onto him with a sexy sigh and leaned her head onto his shoulder. Her auburn hair fell all over his chest in soft waves and Tetsuo grew harder, strained against her....

His lips moved a few strands of hair aside and he kissed her upturned throat. "Miaka...." She pushed back against him and Tetsuo flew his hands to hike at her skirt and move to his belt. Did she want this? Did she want it now? But work!.... Miaka was breathless, leaning into his arms as he rifled with their clothing. She wanted to so bad and was opening her lips to say so...

"Miaka-san! Miaka, are you in there?" Principal Sumiyoshi knocked suddenly. Tetsuo made a mental eep, his hardness standing stiff and frozen against Miaka's skirt. Miaka looked over her shoulder and Tetsuo was flushed to see she was panting. Because of him? God she was turning him on....

"Yes! What!" she fairly yelled and Tetsuo gripped her waist to steady her. He felt her thighs tremble back against him. His erection throbbed against her through their clothing.

"I have a child here to see you, or have you forgotten?" Sumiyoshi fairly complained. Miaka stepped regretably from Tetsuo's warmth and turned to face him. Her gaze went deliberately low on him. Tetsuo thought he'd explode on the spot.

"Yes... I mean, no I haven't forgotten!" Miaka smoothed her skirt and swept her hands through her hair. The gestures were still sexy and Tetsuo's mouth went dry.

"Miaka...." he whispered. She shushed him as the principal answered. He seemed to be reading her mind for his next statement made them both cringe.

"And have you seen Shinwa-kun? He's SUPPOSED to be taking calls, you know," Sumiyoshi griped. Tetsuo felt his ardor begin to fade and regretably willed it to happen. It wasn't the time or place....though it almost had been! His mind was eager to access. Tetsuo burned.

"I--- I haven't seen him," Miaka called back lamely. Her gaze settled on her man and her words seared through him. "But if I do, I'll give him your message."

The message of looove, her eyes seemed to say. Tetsuo grinned toothily at her.

"Hmph. Well, your student is waiting," Sumiyoshi went on his way and Miaka and Tetsuo both sighed greatly in unison.

"Miaka, I shouldn't have..." he began but Miaka shushed him.

"Don't even say that. It'll be our time soon enough," she promised, eyes glowing. Tetsuo's heart thudded hard and he was sure his chest was pushing out with it.

"Miaka, really..." he began and Miaka was on tiptoe, nibbling a kiss onto his mouth. He snaked his tongue into her hot bow lips as his ardor began to make a come-back. "On second thought, I'll shut up."

Miaka played with the buttons on his dress shirt, her face bright red. "Can you come over tonight? I want to see you."

"Do I need my jammies?" he tried to tease. His eyes weren't joking however. Miaka pressed close. Her full breasts leaned just beneath his pectorals.

"Somehow, I don't think you'll need any..." Oh god, was she ever this sexy, this playful? Had years of marital ties to another of Suzaku's men, and the denial of another close to her, have pushed her to wanton levels? Was it this strange, second chance with a denied lover to another life?

"Tasuki!" her memory whispered. Her back on the living room floor, Tasuki's bare hips rising against her thighs in firm pumps, his bandit pants pushed to his knees....

It was him again and Miaka wanted him and everything he had.

"I'll be there when you want. I don't need to go to my class tonight..." Tetsuo promised. Miaka pressed a close kiss on his lips, feeling herself surge toward him.... down, girl.

"Come home with me... Hiroshi will understand." Tetsuo did not falter, but grasped her witih the strength of his incarnation. "Nothing will keep me from you....not this time."

His eyes gleamed with the promise of days past.

* * * *

Hiroshi was melancholy again.

Toya was alone with him in his bedroom after school, under the ever pretense of doing "homework", but it troubled him. The small boy tried to tickle Hiroshi to get him to smile, but it only seemed to awaken a darker side inside of him. Hiroshi had been brooding, but this was bordering on downright dangerous.

Instead of laughing back, Hiroshi's eyes had locked with his and in their embraces, tried to slide inside Toya's mental block into the farthest reaches of his memory and mind.

Toya bit his lip to keep from gasping aloud. He knew from Sadako some of what Hiroshi could do and see now, and had locked the ugliest parts of his past life away inside a concrete brick deep inside his psyche. Ever since Hiroshi's mother, Suzaku no Miko, had gone out with Shinwa Tetsuo, past life Suzaku schiseishi Tasuki, he had been determined to find out his secrets.

And it scared Toya to death.

It made him shocked to know his boyfriend COULD do this, and had glimpsed at Sadako's past life as a whore, but it chilled him to the bone to think Hiroshi was picking away at his spells of evasion, and his elusions would have to be explained or seen. He didn't want to anger Hiroshi, but he was really making him wary and afraid about the whole affair.

Toya moved from Hiroshi to perch on the edge of his bed, listening for hope beyond all hope that Miaka-san would come home and rescue him. He really wanted to talk to her. Seiryuu no Miko would be as wonderful, but it was Suzaku no Miko he had almost deflowered with evil intent. He could really use her advice and good words and just maybe.... guilt was eating him up from the inside about it.

"Hmm!" Toya stiffened, his groin pulsing with warmth despite himself. Hiroshi's hands were under his shirt, touching and firm. His mouth was against his ear and Toya heard his frustration as he tried to chisel away at Toya's block.

"No, 'Roshi," Toya said, despite himself, and found himself shoved down onto the bed. He cringed into the mattress with surprise and shrank in when he saw the look in Hiroshi's eyes. He had seen him upset before, even angry over the years growing up, but this look was something else.

It was downright murderous. He cowered beneath him.

"Roshi?" he quivered.

"I know you're hiding something from me," Hiroshi growled. "You put something up so I couldn't See!"

"Oh, whatEVER are you talking about...." Toya tried to fluff it off but he was shaken up and down. "Ow, Hiroshi!"

"You're not showing me everything! I know you were an opera actor in your past life...." Hiroshi's chest rose and fell dramatically.

"Yes, well, I was..."

"But there's something else you're not telling! What is it?" Toya's teeth rattled as he was jostled up and down.

"Stop it!"

"What is it??"

"Hiroshi, get off me!" Toya tried to shove up at his boyfriend's thin chest but he was like a wall. Panic welled in his stomach.

"Tell me!"

"Get off me!!"

"Tell me now!!"

Toya's hands flew up and shoved against Hiroshi's stomach and chest. In his panic, it was as good as a blow to the chin. Hiroshi whoofed, the wind knocked out of him. Toya had hit as hard as a man then, and was shoving him off and away in the momentary confusion.

"Stop it, 'Roshi, just stop it!" Toya screamed and grabbed his backpack. Tears streamed down his face when Hiroshi leaped off the bed at him, his face a mask of rage. "'Roshi!!"

Hiroshi grabbed his arm hard and twisted, pulling Toya close to him. The boys panted in each other's faces as they jockeyed for the upper hand. It was madness; beyond intimacy.

"If you wanna be my boyfriend, you'll tell me!" Toya's teeth rattled as Hiroshi shook him. "TELL ME!"

Toya reeled back and was surprised when his palm made contact with Hiroshi's face. It was a rather girly slap, but Toya was beyond caring about the position. It made Hiroshi recoil and he was scrambling out the bedroom door and running across the apartment with hope against all hope in the blank whiteness of his panicked mind that he was going to get away.

"Toya! TOYA!" Hiroshi screamed furiously. Toya slammed out the front door and away, running as if oni from the seven layers of hell were after him.

And in a way, maybe they were.

Hiroshi barged out the front door a few moments too late-- Toya was good and well gone. He panted hard in anger and punched the wall with a sharp cry. His fist left a hole in the plaster. A moment later he was wheezing his frustration into the living room carpet, tears stinging his eyes.

"What's happening? What's going on??" he wondered. Sobs were his only answer.

And Toya, his boyfriend, was gone.

* * * *

"Hiroshi! What is it, I was just lighting the candles for prayers...." Mitsuko peered around the door to the shrine, tucking his robes around his slight frame. His blue-haired friend wobbled, clutching his hoodie sweatshirt that seemed to be falling off one shoulder. He looked like he'd been crying; his eyes were red and puffy and he was smiling strangely.

"I'm sorry, Mitsuko, I really am... I just... I need your advice," Hiroshi laughed weakly but it sounded futile to the monk's ears. Mitsuko stepped out the door onto the concrete courtyard and peered up into his friend's face.

"I'm always here for you, 'Roshi! You an' the others know that," Mitsuko smiled bravely, trying to lend his optimism to the distraught teen. "What's going on? Did you have a fight with your mother or something?"

The Suzaku no miko....

Hiroshi laughed weakly again and it sounded odd in the cold early evening breeze. "No, nothing like that... with Toya actually."

"Oh, Hiroshi..." Mitsuko said. It wasn't that he was familiar with ways of the opposite, or even same sex, having to abstain from intimacy in the shrine. But he could lend his support and some words of wisdom that could apply.

"I... I... I fought him, Mitsuko. He wouldn't tell me something maybe I shouldn't know about....an I pushed him down..."

"Hiroshi, just apologize, it'll be okay..." Mitsuko tugged at Hiroshi's hand like a child. Hiroshi looked down, his eyes naked with emotion.

"I just want it to be okay... I just want him back! But I can't cause there's all these things going around that I can see!"

Mitsuko felt a small twinge of uneasiness. "Things, huh?"

Hiroshi looked down at the ethereal streamers floating from Mitsuko's shaven scalp and laughed in pain. "I can even see the ties extending from you. It won't go away, and it's making me look at people in past ways! I just want it to stop!"

"Oh, Hiroshi!" Mitsuko held his arms out and Hiroshi fell into them. The smaller teen wobbled and collapsed onto the concrete. Hiroshi lay cradled in his robed arms, and finally let his hurt out. Mitsuko patted him carefully, trying to ease his pain. He didn't know what else to do right now.... his eyes looked around the shrine courtyard and picked out a familiar image of blond youth.

"Naisen, hey..." he greeted. The tall boy walked over and towered over his friends crouched on the ground like a pair of magpies. Hiroshi's gaze upturned, and so like his father's, was twisted in anguish and tears.

"How do you know mama when she was young?" Hiroshi murmured, seeing the wisps of his friend taller, his mother small against his ancient armor...."How is this possible? Naisen, how?..."

"Hiroshi..." Mitsuko said. He grasped Hiroshi's wrist, but he pulled away.

"Tell me! Naisen, you were there too, weren't you? And Sadako? What did you do to her..."

Naisen waited calmly as Hiroshi clambered to his feet, nose to nose with him.

"What did you do to my mother too??"

".....I'll show you," Naisen interjected simply with the ease of soul's passing. Hiroshi's mouth partially opened in surprise. He grasped Hiroshi by the neck and tugged him close enough to kiss.

Naisen didn't miss the surprised dart of red across his friend's features, but ignored it and merely pressed his brow against his. The blue symbol of Nakago glowed from his skin and flushed warmth against Hiroshi's face.

His eyes were wide with shock. "What is...."

"Oh, Naisen..." Mitsuko murmured from their left. Naisen closed his eyes and let Hiroshi in.

Hiroshi wailed soundlessly as he tumbled into the abruptly opened door of Naisen's psyche and fell past the memories of their childhood to something far more ancient and harmful. "Naisen! What are you...." Hiroshi asked mentally but his friend's presence shushed him.

"Watch. And see."

Hiroshi Saw. He saw a small, blond boy brought dead-eyed and heartsick before an old, bearded man resplendant in robes that reached past his throne and seemed to fall down towards him below the dais.

Then he saw what was beneath the robes and what Naisen had to do.

"Very good, Nakago. You have earned our favor," the old man laughed. He heard the courtesans laugh, he saw the snide looks of the guards, felt the humiliation and fear of the boy until he grew big, grew strong... killed...hurt... and mastered his magicks.

Hiroshi saw Nakago as Sergeant, as Lieutenant, and then, as General. He saw the fear he finally instilled in everyone as he became the strongest.

"Because.... only the strong can win," Nakago's deep voice murmured. A lifetime of pain and emptiness echoed from him to his father.

His father was in Nakago's arms and he was crying as he died. Hiroshi watched all this with his mouth open in astonishment.

"So you see," Naisen whispered. Tears spilled from Hiroshi's eyes as he felt his friend's uncertainty in their shared psychic link.

"You knew my papa?" he asked in a very small voice. Naisen clasped Hiroshi's hand.

"YES. I have done things to him..."

Whipping Tamahome's back. The half naked warrior screaming with each red welt of pain as Aunt Yui screamed with him from somewhere nearby...

"Against him..." Nakago pulling Tamahome up by the hair and licking his face.

"To your precious mother..."

Powerful Nakago talking to painted Tomo...his Toya.

'So you couldn't rape the Suzaku no Miko,' his boyfriend in a role of uncertainty.

'When I tried to touch her, she was sealed by a red light.' His oldest friend for once in his powerful form looking troubled.

Images of his very young mother appearing damaged, doll-like, as she lay on a tent floor, her school uniform torn apart around her.

Hiroshi's eyes bled tears but the grief in Naisen's eyes anchored him. "Did you..."

"No. And neither did Toya, though it shames me to tell you, we tried to very much," Naisen's smooth voice cracked and his breath hitched. In their mind's eye, Tomo's hair lashed longer, and held young Miaka down.

The two teenagers came back to, their foreheads pressed together and crying.

"Naisen, are you okay?" Mitsuko asked from his nest of robes. Naisen nodded once and looked into Hiroshi's eyes. The blue-haired boy was hiccupping with all the knowledge he had seen. Naisen's eyes stilled and he leaned to kiss Hiroshi on the forehead. His symbol faded before their eyes, but left a burning impression.

"I'm fine. Hiroshi, you should be too, because we've all done something we're ashamed of. You should trust your mother, and Toya too. And forgive him our trespasses. We've had a lifetime of hurt."

"I....I will. I'll try," Hiroshi scrubbed his wrist across his eyes.

"That's good, cause I need you too," Toya stepped off the wall down the street and approached his boyfriend. It took his whole world to dare as he reached to touch the tears on Hiroshi's cheeks.

Hiroshi waited and leaned into Toya's arms. He snuffled against his shoulder. Naisen looked to Mitsuko and nodded.

"Let's leave them alone...." for once Tomo had a true love he did not magick himself.

Mitsuko nodded and gestured to the temple. "Want to come in for prayers? I think you need a cleansing." Naisen waited for him to adjust his robes and stepped into the shrine with him.

Inside, Naisen took off his shirt and let his long hair fall down the lithe muscles of his back. Mitsuko patted his friend's chest, and urged him to kneel.

"Thank you, my friend," Naisen mumbled. Mitsuko ruffled Naisen's bangs and laid a clean towel over his head and back.

"I know your pain, Naisen.... the guilt eats me too," Mitsuko picked up the shinto prayer stick and rattled the beads into the air.

Outside, Toya's hands reached up across Hiroshi's thin, lithe back and clung to him. He pressed desperate kisses to his face and neck now that they were alone.

"Please, 'Roshi... please, be with me. I need you," he begged plaintively. His hand dipped and pressed against Hiroshi's crotch, fingers kneading against rough material. Hiroshi saw tears in Toya's eyes. It was a whoreish gesture, but one he knew only how to express and from his past life. Hiroshi swelled despite himself but cried in frustration against Toya's sleeve.

Would it ever be good between them? Would they ever feel so good and happy again?

At this point, he didn't know.

* * * *

The next day.

"It's too bad you fell asleep on me," Miaka teased. Tetsuo sighed and leaned back on the couch. He leaned his head back and yawned deeply.

"Believe me, I'm the one that's sorry. I take a night off school and crash out on you. You must be fed up with me," Tetsuo looked up at the ceiling, smiling ruefully.

Miaka leaned close, tucking her feet under her skirt. She played with his touseled bangs and kissed his unshaven cheek. Stubble grit against her lips, but it wasn't unpleasant.

"Not at all. And I intend to keep you here today," Miaka smiled cheekily. The lines at the corner of her eyes crinkled. Tetsuo smiled back, his knees widening. Flashes sparked through his mind of her smile, but he focused on the here and now.

He had almost had an embarrassing moment that morning waking with Miaka beside him. It had never given him problem, or at least MUCH of, in his past life.... but he was alone with her without many friends, alone in her bed and that was much an indication to the progression of their relationship! She had been fast asleep, and far be it to be gentlemanly for their first time to be him molesting her in her sleep.

That brought back far too many uncomfortable memories in fact.... Tetsuo traced a finger along Miaka's cheek and tried to banish the bad feeling. He had hopped out of bed and into the shower, racing to get back into clothes and a new day.

"I'm not going anywhere, odango," Tetsuo finally let himself relax. She was his now! When Miaka pulled his face close for a kiss, Hiroshi sidled out from his room, and halted. He opened the front door, and slammed it deliberately. When Tetsuo fell off of his mother's face, Hiroshi stalked back to his room. His face was drawn so low, someone could have tripped over his lower lip. Tetsuo felt his stomach clench. The kid was going to give him shit again. The storm was heightening in that gaze.

"Hi, son!" Miaka called cheerily, but rather belatedly. Hiroshi grimaced, noticing the dart of pink across her face and Tetsuo's. The old friend, the man child. He sighed mightily.

"Hi, Mom. Is he staying?" Hiroshi didn't know what his mother and Tetsuo had been doing last night after he got back from the shrine, but he prayed against all hope that it was nothing sensual whatsoever.

It might have been his own inadequacies sexually as a youth, as a gay boy, and as a virgin. It was also that he just hated Tetsuo. He could see more images from the man, and there were the friendly encounters from a lifetime ago. Teasing his mother, the two singing and joking about something or another.

Seeing the irate look of dismay replacing Tetsuo's blush made Hiroshi alittle smug but empty inside. Yes, he did hate the newly turned 19 year old...he was not that much older than him! Why was his mother with him so badly?? Uncle Asakura was there, and had expressed an interest.... and he was Aunt Yui's brother in law.....

"Er, yes, I hope to," Tetsuo said carefully. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Miaka squeezed his arm and Hiroshi was ready to eat his own lip off at the assuring look they shared. Why did they have to have such a nauseating bond???

"Well, do whatever, I just don't have to know about it," Hiroshi snapped. Tetsuo's eyes dipped but he looked like he was getting angry.

Good, that made two of them.

"What's that supposed to mean? Hey, Hiroshi..."

"Hiroshi!" his mother rebuked. "What's gotten into you?"

Hiroshi threw his knapsack across the living room and ran back into his sanctuary.

"He shouldn't have said that to you," Tetsuo swore, his face flushed. Miaka grabbed his hand, the both of them rushing to follow.

"It sounded like he said it more to you," she guessed. "Hiroshi, stop!"

The two stopped at the closed bedroom door. When they pushed it open, a hot wind seared out and threw the couple back. Tetsuo planted his feet and steadied Miaka. "What the!" he yelled and Miaka gasped around his arms.

"Suzaku!" her legs went weak and even with Tetsuo's might, went to her knees. Whether in supplication or surprise, one couldn't be sure.

Suzaku smiled, stepped forward. His wings dipped and folded into place as he moved, allowing room behind him in the cramped space.

"Suzaku?...What is..." Tetsuo gazed at the god of his past life. It was all here, all here now... He felt Miaka hugging onto his leg; it was enough that he could have joined her on the floor.

"Yes, it is me. Do not bow so, my priestess. Rise and be well. I havce come to see the two of you in good faither after all," Suzaku's voice rolled from a creation eons before the first humans began to scratch a living in the dirt.

"What's happened to Hiroshi? Is he okay??" Miaka's gaze went past the tall legs of the god's form to see her son sprawled unconscious along the floor as if taking a nap. Tetsuo felt her small hand tighten at the fabric of his jeans near the knee.

"He's just fine!" a second voice chirped from nowhere. "I can wait for him to revive, no da, for we've got to have alittle talk too, no da."

Miaka gasped as a skinny figure stepped directly FROM Suzaku's shadow as if part of it all along. The mask was set aside and the scarred face smiled; his one good eye sparkled with tears. Tetsuo gaped at the spiky white hair stabbing the air between them.

"Chichiri! Oh my, Chichiri!!" Miaka called joyfully. She went from Tetsuo to her old beloved seishi and went joyously into his open, thin arms.

"I know you! Chichiri.... it's been too long!" Tetsuo was hit with an onslaught of flashes centered on that enigmatic smile. Chichiri smiled at him knowingly and squeezed Miaka.

"It's good to see you again, Miaka-chan. Aren't we a pair, so much older, no da!" he laughed."Tasuki, I envy your new youth. I hope you two have been well."

'And I hope you two found each other finally!' his gaze read openly.

Tetsuo laughed and scrubbed the back of his neck. "It's Tetsuo now. But I'm here again... and I'll protect Miaka."

Chichiri glanced guiltily to Suzaku's side.... Miaka and Tetsuo didn't know it, but Taka's spirit was tucked back inside one mighty wing and silently observing all. It had been at Suzaku's behest, but unless they both kept quiet... he would see all, too.

"I'll hold you to that, Tetsuo, no da," Chichiri knelt beside Hiroshi's comatose figure. He could feel Taka's eyes anguishly watching the blue hair across a young, pale face.

"I will," Tetsuo leaned and clasped Chichiri's hand. His head swam.

Suzaku turned, tucking his wings most elegantly. "Chichiri-san...will you stay with the boy? There is much to tell him."

"I will, Suzaku, no da," Chichiri adjusted his kesa and smiled his perpetual beatific smile. But he was worried for Taka's sake.

"Chichiri..." before Miaka could ask further, Suzaku lifted one hand and spread his long, ivory white fingers wide.

"Miaka!" Tetsuo grabbed her as flames shot forward and carried them away. Suzaku crossed his powerful arms as Tetsuo and Miaka hovered in a warm, far-off dimension through time and space.

"Where are we?" Miaka wanted to know. Tetsuo held onto her tightly. Suzaku smiled and animated images spurt from his fingertips, surrounding the pair who glanced about them with awe as if they were babes lost in the wood.

"You both have had a strong connection before..." images of Tasuki the bandit joking and picking fun with a much younger Miaka.

"Through all the good times...." Miaka hugging Tasuki and Nuriko's arms, all three shouting some song together.

"And the bad..." Tetsuo's eyes widened and he squeezed them tight at the horrible image that came next. Tasuki...no, HE was on top of Miaka in an inn forcing her to try and.... and...

Miaka flushed with unhappiness as she heard herself from far away across the memory.

"Tasuki! Tasuki, this isn't you! No! Takaaaa!" Tetsuo choked and ducked his head. Miaka gazed at him worriedly. His bangs had fallen into his eyes.

"You are Tasuki and Tasuki is you. Become the fire that you know to reach..." Suzaku held out one hand and Tetsuo looked up warily. "Do not let the bad of the past stop you."

Extended between God and Man, was a long iron tessen, glittering in diamond dust. Miaka gasped highly and covered her mouth. Tetsuo felt all of hiimself slide down a long tube, elongate, looking back at himself.... and when he reached to trail his fingers along the handle...

.... he slammed into one. "Tetsuo!" Miaka said.

Tetsuo grasped the tessen and roared a familiar old yell. His hair brightened to a full orange flame and fell in longer waves. His shoulders filled out, his chest and thigh muscles grew more taut, defined....

When he opened his amber eyes to look for Miaka, he saw he had gained a few inches in height. Tetsuo looked in wonder to the tessen in his hand and brought his spare hand to Miaka's cheek. Her eyes trembled in moisture.

"I AM Tasuki... I know what I am here for.... to know your kindness and seek your forgiveness..."

Miaka cried and squeezed his hand to her cheek; pressed kisses to it. "I already forgave you, Tetsuo. So many years ago..."

Taka peeked out from Suzaku's wing, for he knew he wouldn't be noticed at THIS point. His spiritual jaw dropped and if he had a stomach, it would have fallen to his shoes.

He didn't know these images of memory Suzaku now spun around the fully equipped Tetsuo and Miaka.... they weren't of this new life, but of Tasuki... and his wife, much younger.

Too much Tasuki and his wife, much younger....

Tetsuo's cheeks flushed as he saw himself explicitly entering Miaka, willing and spread on the floor. Miaka bit his finger as she remembered the sighs, and they were audible for Suzaku now. The two gazed at each other with heat in their eyes.

To make that fire again....

And to Taka. 'Miaka? Miaka had..... with Tasuki? When? Where? TASUKI??' Suzaku smiled beatifically at the two and spread his wings back, folding Taka back purposefully. If there ever was a time to curse his patron god, Taka found it. He beat at the red feathers encircling him small and unseen. He was held back effortlessly.

They were ready and what he wanted would be achieved....

"Become the flame, my children. Embrace the fire and make your own heat in the world..." he invited and began to fade, his words tolling like a bell. At his departure, a hotter gust of wind pushed Miaka forward against Tetsuo's chest.

"Tetsuo..." she murmured. "You're here... you're really here..."

Tetsuo ached, his muscles growing heated and a lower portion of him more so. "Miaka, I've waited a long time..." he hoarsely said. Miaka invited his hands to unbutton her blouse and tug her bra off. Her nipples pushed hotly against his chest. His large hands rounded the undersides and to her back.

Miaka spread her hands down the expanse of muscle across chest and belly and rested on his hips. Her fingers were busy with the button and zipper of his confines as Tetsuo breathlessly stood, at attention so to speak.

When Miaka exposed his nether region, her lidded eyes drank in his bronzed skin and his spearing organ. Her hand shyly explored him with wanton interest. Tetsuo arched his back and moaned. Denim clung to his hips and lower thighs.

He captured her mouth with his. They were swept in a wall of flame and grit that felt like dust....not dust...sand... That dream, the dream in the desert, Miaka's mind hazily pinpointed. They were soon naked to its will. Chest to breast, hip to hip... it had come true. Miaka's toes were curling, setting her on tiptoe in iron arms holding her open to him.

Tetsuo had long set aside his tessen and had pushed Miaka back. Her legs spread willfully; she stroked his pulsing organ. His large hands gripped her thighs as she pulled him in. He was certain she had screamed in pleasure; he could hear nothing but his own heartbeat.

Their moans filled the world and each other's ears.

"Uhn! Uhn! ah...." Tetsuo sounded like he was wheezing but he didn't care. Miaka was crying out up against his chest, yelling into his bodily thrusts. Higher and higher, Tetsuo felt his mind detach and all there was, was heat and her and his readiness clamped tightly by hot, wet walls....so hot... so GRIPPING....

"AH!" they arched together and at the crux of climax.... Tetsuo thought how life was so warm... so sweet... spurted to an existence of once inch with quick, creamy fluid....

Miaka curled into his chest and Tetsuo's hands curled around her scalp tenderly. His celestial symbol blazed hot crimson on his wrist. He was still and thrust hard twice more, his eyes rolling back. Miaka bit his chest above his heart. Her walls throbbed around him. The two sank down and the fires dissipated down as their passion cooled.

The world clicked and began to move again whereas their limbs lay scattered across the floor of Miaka's bedroom.

* * * *

Hiroshi stirred to, conscious to how his neck was cramped. Why WAS he asleep? It didn't feel like his bed.... what had happened?

"Hiroshi...." a familiar mellow voice said beside him. Hiroshi's heart crashed and he scrambled up from unconsciousness. It was so hard to get back! Why couldn't he lift his head and merely open his eyes?

"He's coming to, no da! I have longed to see your boy in person, Taka-kun, no da..." a chipper voice reverberated and echoed at Hiroshi's right side. He had never heard this person before... and half of what he said made no sense at all. But he was saying his father's name!

"He'll be with us soon enough. Hiroshi.... son, wake up."

It was Papa... Papa! Hiroshi's fingers grappled for purchase and fisted the carpet. "Papa!" he cried and his dazed eyes opened blurrily. The most outlandish person he had ever seen was kneeling at his side. He couldn't even see his eyes and a perpetual smile was on his lips.... his white hair was absurd, sticking out at insane angles. And he was dressed like some kind of Shaolin monk from a kung fu film!

"Who...who are you??" Hiroshi scrambled back and scrubbed a wrist across his eyes as he did. He couldn't see!

"I'm here, son..." Hiroshi whirled to see his fatehr beside him... but half spectral like in a movie, ghostly and outlined, the edges of his form tugging and drifting on the air....

"Papa?? Papa! You're here...you're really here...." hiroshi's grin was wide though tears cascaded from his long lashes. If Toya could see THIS.... Naisen, too.

Chichiri smiled to Taka's soul and nodded. "Yourr son has missed you, my friend. do you need a moment with him?"

Taka smiled ruefully, his eyes sad but kind. "No, Chichiri... we have only so long with him. Hiroshi, listen to me... everything that's happened, is happening...is a long time in being written. It began when your mother fell into a book and met me.... in my past life."

Hiroshi gaped, but nodded... even with an inkling of a memory nagging him... Uncle Keisuke hiding a red wrapped book hurriedly...

"I think we may have to explain, no da..." Chichiri kindly suggested but the teen surprised him.

"I saw something from Naisen...and Toya... and Sadako... I think I know how they knew you and Mama from years ago... it's so hard to say into words!"

Chichiri looked astounded but Taka's smile reassured him. "My son has a handle on it even though it may seem impossible."

The old monk laughed. "He IS your son, Taka-kun, no da! Some abilities must have come from you straight to him."

"Indeed my warrior," Suzaku murmured. Hiroshi gaped as the most supernatural man he had ever seen FORMED his way through the walls and crossed his arms. His red feathered wings of flame folded back and Taka favored the god with a half-lidded look. It wasn't a very happy face, but it sure was resigned to the situation. Had Suzaku known about that... TRYST.... this whole time? He wondered about Chichiri too, for that matter...

Hiroshi gaped and leaned against the only substantial man in the room. Chichiri held him up and smiled.

"Everything you've seen... everything that is happening... as well as Tetsuo..." Suzaku's eyes were hard shards of flint as they bore into the teen. "...is all for a reason. All of the pieces are true.... all of it."

"It's all true...." His friend's memories flew through Hirosh's mind. The child whore... the skinny soldier with the coloring of an outside... the opera actor with the pure voice of a star, and the natural talent to magick his pimps away...

Now this old warrior monk, and the faded memories his father had of a glorious past life that had been thrustily revisited onto him with his mother's approach. The old monk was squeezing his hand and nodding. Hiroshi nodded back.... he knew deep in his heart of hearts that he could trust this old person. His father he already knew... but this god-man he didn't know if he COULD trust.

If he was for Tetsuo, anyway, it was a black mark.

Suzaku looked down on him disapprovingly, and no matter how Hiroshi felt about the whole situation, he knew he shouldn't cross toes with a god.

"Trust in Suzaku, Hiroshi-kun. He knows what he's doing," Chichiri chirped. Taka nodded and Hiroshi noted the resignation in his eyes. He couldn't like being replaced after all.

"His will seems off, sorry," Hiroshi muttered. "So you left my mother along with... him?"

Suzaku's eyes were not kind. "HIM is the reincarnated celestial star Tasuki, mortal son of Taka," Suzaku boomed. Hiroshi felt himself not liking his title one bit. "I guard the fire and the heart's stoking of flame. For all that you don't like about Tasuki, know this, mortal son..."

'Of Taka, yeah yeah yeah,' Hiroshi thought irritably.

"...For all his quick attributes, Tasuki held back his position. My Suzaku no Miko had more to fear of losing her bodily innocence to your father than to him."

Chichiri blushed as Taka fixed Suzaku with a decidely more aloof and lowly angry hooded stare. Hiroshi flushed as his stomach did emotional flipflops. Of course he didn't want to hear anything sexual regarding his mother.... she was his MOTHER!

"So you're saying 'Tasuki' has been in love with my mother since back then?" Hiroshi grumped hotly. This was going alittle too far, now. Far be it for Suzaku to grant the two time for a booty call, now this? It was borderline insulting.

Suzaku twisted his head much like the bird of his namesake. "Yes."

"Why you..." Hiroshi felt faint.

"What we mean, Hiroshi-kun, is that time gave Tasuki a chance now, no da. I would never begrudge your mother an ounce of happiness for all she's given our world, no da," Chichiri integrated in his smooth, calm matter.

"Chichiri..." Taka's ethereal form looked at him.

"And she loved your father very much, no da. It can be enough that she was fortunate enough to love Taka in two lifetimes, no da," Chichiri clasped the boy's skinny shoulder.

That made more sense and did much to calm Hiroshi's trouled soul. He looked into the monk's face and smiled. Taka sighed.

"It's strange.. how things change from life to life..." Tasuki in Miaka's arms flashed through Taka's mind. "But then how everything is very much the same."

"I don't want any part of this..." of THEM... "But she is my mama. I'll watch over her as best I can."

"Thank you, son." Taka caught Suzaku's piercing stare and waited. Before they had come, Suzaku had promised him a moment alone with Miaka. But if she was with Tasuki/Tetsuo, how was he going to get around THAT?

"Be well, Hiroshi-kun. I'll try and stop in from time to time as my duties permit," Chichiri bowed, then pulled the skinny boy for a hug. Hiroshi was surprised but hugged back. It wasn't too abnormal to embrace this funny, old monk.

"Thanks Chichiri-san. Papa... will I ever see you again?" Hiroshi asked in a small voice. Taka smiled and his soul glowed a few moments in love.

"I think you know the answer to that one, son. Whether as I am now or in a new form.... I will see you again. You're a fine man. Never lose your nobility."

Taka held up one ghostly hand and Hiroshi slowly plunged his fingers through them. He shivered.

"I love you, Papa."

"I love you, son."

"Taka. Are you ready?" Suzaku boomed suddenly. Chichiri knelt by his side, ready to depart. Sukunami Taka's spirit regarded his god with a solid stare and nodded. He was lucky he was dead because it would have hurt too much... well even in the limbo effect of afterlife, he hurt. He would have to be ready to face his wife.

"Yes. Take me now." To Miaka..

Suzaku swept his wing forward and swept Taka away. Hiroshi was buffeted back by the wave of heat extended and fell onto his bed. When he looked up, only he remained in his room.

As well as stray red feathers littered about.

* * * *

Miaka lay awake in her bedroom watching Tetsuo sleep. The pair were fully naked and sprawled across the carpet, having missed the bed entirely once Suzaku's flame had deposited them back from the dimension they had explored...

'Each other and then some,' Miaka thought and tired not to giggle aloud. Tetsuo had filled out and looked more as Tasuki had... his muscular chest rose and fell in tandem to his breaths; his red hair flung in gorgeous waves around his angelic expression.

Miaka's eyes crinkled and she leaned closer, tickling her fingers along Tetsuo's belly... her full breasts leaned into the ground and his side as she pressed closer. Tetsuo smiled and made a cute purring sound in his sleep. Tasuki had returned. What they had tried so briefly, so unlike her careful life seven years ago... had been repeated.... and again on her bedroom carpet... and hopefully again soon.

Miaka bit her lip and dipped her questing fingers along the small line of hair below Tetsuo's navel. She would love to get things started along those THOSE thoughts.

Before her fingers could reach the bodypart she had been introduced to so forwardly, there was a flash by their touching feet.

Miaka had time to see Tetsuo's long toes flex as he remained in slumber, but she was alert to whatever had transported into her room.

She knew Suzaku seemed to like her, but even she was not going to feel comfortable in her birthday suit around him.

"Miaka..." the ethereal figure said sadly and Miaka gaped, her eyes wide....and then really searched frantically for their scattered clothing. How did Taka get here? Her late husband... this was definately not a good time!

"Taka!" Miaka gasped and cursed unladylike in her head. If she ever got the courage to relate this to Yui, she knew she'd die of laughter. Not at her expense, oh never... but it was funnier when it wasn't happening to you. All she could come up with was her blouse and she clasped it ot her breasts as she clamped her thighs shut.

How funny of Suzaku to send only that, Tetsuo's jockey shorts, and their socks back. Her patron god seemed to be developing an odd sense of humor as of late.

The spirit of Sukunami Taka gazed upon his wife with still eyes. "Miaka... my love.... I know about you and Tasuki seven years ago."

Miaka blushed a bright red, dropped Tetsuo's shorts onto his privates and wished she could drop through the floor. Or into the middle of a battlefield. Whichever came first that is.

She WAS caught as it was. In the flesh bare and open.

"You... you know about that, Taka?" Miaka's eyes filled with tears. She burned with guilt. "I.. I'm so sorry... I should have told you, Taka."

"You should have," Taka agreed and crossed his ghostly arms. The edges of his form fanned out slowly. "Did Tasuki need to be forgiven so much? Did you not think of me?"

"I...." Miaka looked down at her bare legs, still taut at her age. "It's now how you think. He didn't come for a sneak about...You had been at the school and he just appeared..."

How could she explain it without it sounding so cheap? Though it always made her guilt-ridden, the memory was a good one. The utter look on her flame seishi's face when they had kissed.... how peaceful and happy his visage when he dared enter her as he balanced on sturdy elbows. "He was so guilty... about that time...with Hikou and the inn." Miaka's face flushed.

It had been more than sex.

"He was in hell, Taka! And I.... I needed to forgive him..." It had been atonement. Purification of his guilt. And she had offered it to him the way he would have understood.... because she wanted it.

Taka sighed and looked away. He looked distraught. "When I came into the book and everyone who must have ever held a torch for you was deceased; they all held their peace. Except for Tasuki. Do you know how that hurt me, even then? I couldn't fully remember Tamahome, but I had to endure his competition? I may not have been as much in hell as Tasuki, but I've had my share of lumps. Miaka..." Taka's eyes were very sad. "Why didn't you ever tell me? I had to see his incarnation come to you to find out about his 'soul's journey.' "

Miaka reached out to Taka.... her fingers ghosted his ethereal cheek and sank through. Frozen, she withdrew her cold digits sorrowfully. And laid them on Tetsuo's warm shoulder.

Taka's eyes flicked, noting the gesture.

"I am so sorry, Taka. I loved you so much.... but you left me inside for a time. At one point in our marriage, you turned me down for work. I ...I was lonely. And I was so glad Tasuki had come to visit me. I don't want to say it just happened..." Even though it did....

"But I care about him too, in some way."

And it was any wonder if Miaka didn't shock herself yet again. She had loved each seishi in their own way, from wistful what-if in Hotohori, far off possibility in Nuriko's gender-bended life, and staved off heat from Tasuki when she had returned.

It had always been Taka... but when Tasuki had crash-landed in her living room when Hiroshi was a child..... she finally saw him as a man. He had needed her.

"And maybe, just maybe... I need him too," Miaka whispered.

"I love you, Miaka. I've always loved you."

Miaka smiled sadly. "I love you too, Taka. And I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"Just be happy, Miaka. You're with him now, I suppose."

"Yes..." Miaka flushed and tried to block their more than naked attributes. "I am."

Taka shrugged.... it would have taken a blind man to not notice the state he had found them in. If he had come in five minutes later, he bitterly thought, he would have found Tasuki's incarnation mounting her. Suzaku could be thanked only so far at this point.

"Whichever the case, I wish you joy. I just hope the flameboy treats you well."

"Don't worry about me," Miaka smiled through her guilty tears. "Have you seen..."

"I've been with our son," Taka nodded. His sad eyes smiled ever so briefly. "Be good to him."

"I will," Miaka nodded. "And please.... say goodbye to Chichiri for me!"

Taka smiled truthfully at that. "Maybe he and I will take rebirth together and be with you again. And Tasuki... I mean, Tetsuo... will have to watch out for me again."

Miaka sighed and was still. Her thoughts stretched a mile wide to open spaces. How melancholy and quite sad. "Taka..."

"Goodbye, my Miaka," Taka whispered. He leaned forward and touched his ghostly lips to hers. Miaka closed her eyes and shivered at the cold breathy exchange. Twin tears streamed from the closed lids to the windows of her soul.

When she opened them once more, Taka's shade had passed. Her young man was as naked as a greek god beside her but Miaka lingered on her husband. She buried her face in her knees and cried quietly.

Tetsuo opened his eyes slowly. He looked around, his hand on his belly, and found Miaka clasping her arms around her knees, partially hiding her femininity. He smiled and laid a hand on her back. Miaka raised her reddened eyes and smiled. Alarmed, Tetsuo sat up, not caring if she exposed herself and took her shoulders in his hands.

"Miaka! What is it?" she asked furtively. He was relieved when Miaka touched his face.

"Oh, Tetsuo.. I just... I saw Taka's spirit," she said. Tetsuo's heart thudded. His old rivalry reared its ugly head in his mind as his body seized.

"He... he did... Miaka, are you alright?" Tetsuo blurted, with all the brash caring he was known for. Miaka nodded and kissed Tetsuo's large palm pressed to her face.

"I am... he told me... he saw us seven years ago," Miaka blushed. Tetsuo blushed more. How unabashed they had been in their mutual understanding... and their nakedness now. His penis twitched as he eyed her curves despite himself.

"I hope he didn't see us now... he would have gotten an eyeful," Tetsuo murmured softly trying to calm Miaka. She clung to his strong arms and buried her face in his broad chest. She laughed painfully in spite of herself.

"It's just so strange... and so much to take in..." she sniffed. Tetsuo turned her face up with a crooked finger. He coudl feel heat build in his stomach, and begin to coil to something strenouous. He gazed into Miaka's eyes with a slowly building fire.

"Let me love you, Miaka.... You deserve to be taken care of," he promised. Miaka sighed as her body warmed against his.

"Oh my...." she felt him harden against her hip. "Are we going to be getting used to each other all day now?"

"All I know..." Tetsuo pulled Miaka flush to him. He was pleased to hear her gasp in surprise. "..is that I love you. And I'll make sure that..."

Miaka's fingers clutched his back as he lowered her to the carpet. Her feet gripped the backs of his thighs.

"...you're used to the better moments... uhn!" Tetsuo interrupted himself to probe against the appropriate cavern and pushed hard, driving his hips flush to hers. Miaka cried out against his shoulder.

"In..." thrust

"This..." thrust

"Life!"

Miaka rocked with his body's pushes, her head lolling on the ground. Her eyes locked on his, her face was very red. Her lips parted and she held onto him. Tetsuo thust slowly but harder, his face a grit mask of red determination. Think of ME... not your dead husband!

"Miaka... Miaka!" She clung to his wide shoulders, helpless beneath his onslaught. Each squeeze of her walls around his plump member made her see stars. Stars... her celestial lover...

This was real... this was now!

"Tetsuo..." her legs lifted, knees clasping him to her. Tetsuo couldn't have retreated if he wanted to... and he didn't want to.

'Make me yours... make me healed...' Miaka clutched onto his hips as Tetsuo rocked back and forth on his palms, slamming his hips at frightening speeds. His muscles stood out rock hard on his chest and he felt lightheaded. He was going to lose it... but he wanted Miaka to black out first.

They clutched each other as bliss turned their movements languid and fulfilled.

End for now

I borrowed a line from Utena for Taka to his son. Never lose your nobility.... I think the prince in Utena meant a thinly veiled reference to her virginity... subliminal messages in anime! Who'da thunk it?

This one was fun to write in the wee witching hours at work. Funny how your mind goes to smut when you have some free time :P Much apologies if there are any stray typos; I usually do a good job at catching them while I'm typing the rough, but had a limited time to get it up online before sleep for work.

I'm looking forward to the holidays and have two Avatar movies on the mind. Hmm...

Like it? Didn't like it? Please review!

sincerely yours, pen rose

12/08/09


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